


Engagement Overseas

by Calicolor



Category: Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball
Genre: Arranged Marriage, Chef Kagami, Comedy, Drama & Romance, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-02
Updated: 2015-12-17
Packaged: 2018-04-07 06:47:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 25,960
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4253454
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Calicolor/pseuds/Calicolor
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kuroko, being from a wealthy family, has great things expected of him. So his parents decide to arrange a marriage for him, which will take place in Hawaii after a long cruise from Japan. However, it seems that Kuroko is the only one not completely onboard with this whole "arranged marriage". On the cruise, he meets Kagami, a chef who has a knack for basketball. But what will Kuroko do when he realizes the one he loves is someone he will have to eventually leave behind?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Departure

“Hurry up, Tetsuya! The ship is boarding now!”

Kuroko turned his head to nod at his father. “I’ll be there in a minute.” He turned back to gaze out at Japan…for the last time. Eyes burning and a tight feeling in his chest, he turned and ran from the sight.

* * *

“Isn’t this room so nice?”

Kuroko watched as his mother squealed in excitement. She dropped her bags on one of the beds and began inspecting the many things in the fancy room.

“Oooh, even the bathroom is nice.”

Kuroko looked around, too. There were two beds, a flat screen television mounted to the wall, a comfy-looking armchair in the corner (which his father was currently sitting in), a couch against the wall, and right above it was a porthole window that overlooked the vast ocean. He had to admit to himself, the room was pretty nice.

Clearing his throat, he said, “So, we’ll be here for three weeks?”

“Anxious, are you sweetie?” His mother poked her head out of the bathroom, beaming. “Well, that’s right, three whole weeks on this cruise ship. So, don’t worry. You’ll get to meet your fiancée—er—soon-to-be-wife soon enough.”

“That’s right, son,” his father joined in. He had started reading one of the magazines he’d found in the drawer of the nightstand. “As soon as we reach Hawaii, you will be meeting Miss Momoi.”

 _Yeah. Then it’s off to the alter…_ Kuroko thought, groaning internally.

“But, of course, we might as well take a lovely vacation cruise on the way over. Right? We’ve got the money for it, so why not?” His mother giggled with delight.

Kuroko wandered over to the couch. He sat down, staring at his shoes. That’s right, he was part of a wealthy family. His father was an important businessman while his mother was a nurse. And, of course, they wanted him to marry a “promising young woman” whether he liked it or not. Well, he was sure they just wanted the best for him. But he couldn’t shake the feeling of being completely helpless in this situation. It wasn’t his decision…he didn’t have a choice. He clenched his fists.

_It’s not like I asked for this arranged marriage._

* * *

“That diner was really great. I’m stuffed,” Kuroko’s father said.

It was getting dark out as the family was walking around the pool on deck on their way back to the room. That was when something caught Kuroko’s eye.

“Mom, Dad, there’s something I want to see. Can I meet at our room later?”

His parents looked at one another, silently speaking with their eyes. Finally, his mother smiled and looked at him once again.

“Alright, sweetie. But be back in one hour, okay?”

“Okay!” Kuroko dashed up the stairs toward the upper deck. He didn’t stop running (even as he bumped into other people, shouting apologies behind him) until he reached it. The best thing he had found on the cruise ship all day.

A basketball court.

It seemed to be deserted at the moment, he observed as he scanned the place as best he could in the near pitch-black darkness. The only things lighting the area were a few lamps. There were two goals on each side of the wide court, four in total. Some benches were lined against the gates that enclosed the area.

Suddenly, he felt his heart drop. He didn’t have his basketball. It was back in the room in his suitcase. He sighed unhappily. It looked like he would have to wait until tomorrow to play. As he was about to walk back to the entrance, something bumped against his foot. He looked down to see a basketball.

“Excuse me! Would you mind passing that back over here?”

Kuroko looked up to see a tall, tan boy with bright red hair. His muscles and physique were so ridiculous that Kuroko felt like he was looking at a professional basketball player.

Kuroko bent over and picked up the ball. He stared at it, turning it over in his hands. Suddenly, all of the anger and frustration he had been holding back since two months ago, when his parents informed him of his organized wedding, struck forward in his mind. The anger of not having a say in his “love life”…of not being able to choose his life partner…of having his life decided for him…and of not being able to play basketball for those two months. Actually, he had not been allowed to have ANY fun since the wedding announcement. He had been too busy being forced to help out with wedding preparations.

And now here was this guy who was allowed to do whatever he wanted. Here he was able to play basketball with no problems on his shoulders or relatives snapping at him to “act like a respectable husband”…“you don’t need any of that basketball”.

He squeezed the ball tightly to his chest.

_He wants me to pass it? Then sure, I’ll pass it. But he won’t be able to catch it…no one can…_

Lifting the ball with one hand, Kuroko pulled back his other, palm facing the ball. The red-haired boy looked at him, confused. Kuroko’s hand shot forward, striking the ball. It spun rapidly in the air on its path toward the redhead. It only seemed to gain more and more speed until…

_…_

_…What?…It can’t be…But how?..._

There he stood, holding the ball, not even having broken a sweat. Grinning, he called out, “I haven’t seen a pass like that before. You seem really good at this. Why don’t you come play some one-on-one with me?”

But…it was impossible. No one could catch his special passes. No one back in high school basketball tryouts (the reason he couldn’t make the team). None of his friends. No one…until just now. This redhead was the first on the list.

He couldn’t believe it. The guy had actually CAUGHT it. His heart swelled with excitement. Maybe this cruise wouldn’t be so bad after all. Things were starting to get interesting now, weren’t they?

The redhead had walked over to him. He looked down at him, concerned. “Oi, you still there?”

Kuroko looked up. “Oh…yeah.”

“Well, I’ll introduce myself, then.” He brought a fist up, pointing his thumb at his chest. “Yo! I’m Kagami Taiga. Nice to meet someone else with a talent for basketball.”

“Hello. My name is Kuroko Tetsuya. I…have a question.”

“Mm?”

“How did you catch that pass just now?”

He raised his eyebrows at him, giving him a puzzled look. “Whadd’ya mean? It was pretty easy to me.”

This statement jumbled Kuroko’s mind even more. “You don’t mean to tell me that pass was _easy_ to catch…do you?"

“Well, I mean it was a bit faster than I’m used to, but it didn’t seem too complicated.” He spun the ball on his finger, impatiently. “Anyway, like I said before. You and me. One-on-one. How ‘bout it?”

Kuroko couldn’t suppress a laugh. Seriously, this guy…he caught a ridiculous pass like that and that’s all he says? It was the first time he had smiled in two months and it felt wonderful.

“Hey, what’s so funny?” Kagami scowled at him. "Hey!"

Kuroko stopped laughing and smiled. “Nothing, nothing. You just made my day is all. Alright. I’ll play you then.”

Kuroko ran over to a goal, leaving a puzzled Kagami staring after him.

“Well? Aren’t you coming? Or did you decide you don’t want to play anymore?”

Kagami gave a cheeky grin. “Course I’m playing. It’s _you_ who needs to make sure they’re ready,” he called, running to join Kuroko.

This guy, Kagami, he really seemed to live for basketball. His movements were so quick, Kuroko could hardly believe it when he managed to get his hands on the ball. Seeing an opening in Kagami’s block, he aimed and shot the ball. It rose higher and higher…then fell far away onto a bench by the gate.

“You’re…not very good at shooting, are you?”

Oh, right, that was another reason he couldn’t make the high school basketball team.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I made it a 3 week cruise because I'm not really sure how long it would take to cruise from Japan to Hawaii...I'm probably wrong so let's just go with that for the sake of the story *laughs nervously*.


	2. The Flaming Hot Café

Kuroko slowly opened his eyes. It was pitch black and impossible to make out anything. It felt like the place was leaning. He started to panic.

_It’s an earthquake!_

Nah. There would be more shaking and stuff falling down. That couldn’t be it. So, therefore…

_The world is moving!_

He mentally facepalmed himself. Well, of course the world was moving. It always was. But it had never moved like this before…now he finally understood…

_The world must be ending!_

Suddenly, a blinding light filled his vision. He, once again, couldn’t see anything. The world was tilting and he was blinded. This was it. This was the end. Kuroko flailed his arms aimlessly like a penguin on a diet.

“Lord, please don’t take me yet! I’m sorry I stole a cookie from the jar without permission. I’m sorry for hiding Midorima-kun’s lucky item and laughing when he couldn’t find it. I’m even sorry for spoiling the end of Death Note to Aomine-kun…but seriously, that ending was so crazy, how could you not talk about it?...But anyway, I’m sorry—”

“What? Tetsuya, what are you talking about? Wake up!” A voice was calling out to him from the distance.

“…Huh?”

Kuroko awoke to find his father standing over him, shaking him by the shoulders. He squinted at the ray of light streaming in through the porthole window. The room was gently rocking from side-to-side. Oh, right…they were on a cruise ship.

He looked up at his father, who sighed. Awkwardly rubbing the back of his head and sitting up, Kuroko said, “Sorry. Was I sleep talking again?”

“Yeah, you were. You seemed like you were having a bad dream. It’s no big deal though, we were just about to wake you up anyway.” His father stood up and made his way to the bathroom. Before closing the door, he poked his head back out. “By the way, what is a ‘Death Note’?”

Kuroko waved his hand. “You don’t want to know.”

His father made a sort of confused face then shrugged his shoulders, closing the door. Kuroko got out of bed and walked over to his mother, who was sitting on the other bed flipping through channels on the TV.

“Good morning, Mom.”

She turned her attention from the TV to smile up at him. “Good morning, sweetie. Weird dream?”

“Very.”

“Where do you want to get breakfast? There’s a list of restaurants on the table over there.”

Kuroko wandered over to the small table next to the couch. Sitting down, he grabbed the restaurant catalog and scanned the names for an interesting title. There were at least twenty to choose from. A few minutes later, his eyes stopped on one: The Flaming Hot Café. _Hmm…what a weird name._ He returned to his mother’s side clutching the list to his chest. He held it out to her and pointed to the name.

“How about we go here?”

“Sure. Whatever you like.”

* * *

As they sat at a table next to the window in the café, Kuroko fiddled with his fork anxiously while staring his usual vacant expression out the window. His parents were talking about the wedding: Who was going to be there. How the two of them were going to dress. How KUROKO was going to dress. How the reception would go. Blah. Blah. Blah.

He didn’t exactly want to talk about it right now. It was too early in the morning, and too early in their trip. So he decided to distract himself by watching the waves go by. The sun was shining beautifully against the water. Occasionally, he would notice a dolphin or two jump out and then dive back in. He couldn’t help but wish that he had the freedom that they had. They were able to swim wherever they wanted to their hearts’ content, while he was being forced into a commitment he never wanted.

He snapped out of his thoughts when he realized the waiter had brought their food out. A plate was placed in front of him along with a cup of coffee. Scrambled eggs, a sausage, and a biscuit filled his plate. He hadn’t even realized how hungry he had been until he started eating.

At the end of the meal, his mother sighed. “Wow, that was so good.”

His father nodded in agreement. “Excuse me, waiter!” The waiter came over. “Could we give our compliments to the chef in charge of our meal?”

“Of course. I’ll bring him right out.”

Kuroko only half-heard this conversation. His mind was fully awake now and he was busy remembering the fun he had with the stranger named Kagami the night before. They had played basketball together and it was the most fun he’d had in a while (even though he was nowhere near Kagami’s level in shooting skills). He frowned, gazing out the window again. It was too bad he probably wouldn’t see him again. This ship was huge and there were so many peop—

“Good morning! I am the chef behind your breakfast today. My name is Kagami.”

Kuroko almost choked on his coffee as he spun around to see the same Kagami that he had played basketball with wearing a chef hat and apron, grinning at them all. When he caught Kuroko’s eye, he just smiled even wider and laughed.

“Hey, Kuroko! Fancy seeing you here. So you like my food, eh?”

Kuroko couldn’t stop the heat rising to his cheeks. Seriously? Just as he starts to think about Kagami, he shows up? Nah, this had to be a dream…a really embarrassing dream. _Wait, embarrassing? I’m not embarrassed! Why would I be embarrassed?_ All of this was too much for Kuroko to take in.

Attempting to cover his reddened face, he stammered a reply, “Y-yeah, of course.”

His parents looked at him with question. “Do you know him, son?”

Kagami answered for him. “Oh, yeah! Kuroko and I met yesterday. He’s a good kid.”

“Well, isn’t that nice. Tetsuya made a friend!” his mother gushed. “And he makes great food.”

“Why, thank you.”

“Do you wait tables sometimes, too?”

_Wait. Why are you asking that?_

“Yes, I do.”

“Well then,” his father started. “We’ll make sure to come here a lot, then.”

_No please don’t—_

“And we’ll request you every time!”

That was it. The final blow. Kuroko was dead. Kuroko-cchi out.

Kuroko somehow managed to throw out a response even during the volcanic eruption across his face. “Um, there’s n-no need for that.”

Why did he say that? Didn’t he want to see Kagami? He was thinking about him earlier, after all. Maybe he just didn’t want his parents to know about this friend he had, or at this point, involve themselves with him. Wait, but why did he want to be secretive about it anyway? He was allowed to have friends, wasn’t he? Well, either way, they definitely knew now. He was sure he was overthinking this whole thing.

His parents hadn’t seemed to hear his sudden comment (or maybe they just ignored it) as they were thanking Kagami for the meal. As Kagami turned to walk back to the kitchen, he looked back at Kuroko.

“I expect to see you later, Kuroko. See ya!”

Kagami was gone, and Kuroko once again found himself wanting to see him again.


	3. One Week Later...

One week had gone by and Kuroko had grown really close to Kagami. They would spend each day on the basketball court showing off their moves to each other. Kagami had even offered to teach Kuroko how to shoot. It…wasn’t working too well. But Kuroko could shoot a hell of a lot better than he could a week before. They had even worked out a method that executed their best skills: Kuroko’s passing and Kagami’s dunking. They had begun to create their own, new sort of play…all they needed was someone to play against to test it out.

The best part of it all was that Kuroko’s parents didn’t seem to mind how long or how often he was out with Kagami. It was great. He had gone from having no fun at all to being free to do anything he wanted. Maybe they felt guilty for depriving him of his favorite sport.

Of course, his parents still insisted on visiting the Flaming Hot Café just about every other day. ‘For Tetsuya to see his new friend!’ as his mother put it. Kuroko didn’t have a lot of friends back home so this was probably like winning the lottery in her eyes.

A few things Kuroko had learned about Kagami: he was 22 years old, just like himself. He had a degree in culinary arts and had been working on the ship for almost two years. He loved cooking more than anything…except basketball. He had been the ace of his high school’s team. In fact, Kagami was telling him about it right now…

“You went _where_!?” Kuroko asked, mouth gaping.

“Seirin High School. Why? Is it special to you?”

“I went to Teiko High School!”

“No way!” Kagami slapped him on the back, effectively knocking Kuroko over. “You lived in Tokyo, too?”

The two of them were taking a break from Kuroko’s shooting lesson over on one of the court’s benches. The court was busy today. Only one of hoops was free. Somehow, they had started talking about their school lives to each other.

“Hmm…” Kagami rested his chin on his hand. “Well, it makes sense why we never met there. For one, you went to a different school. And Tokyo is a pretty big place. The schools are half an hour away from each another. But…say!” He snapped his fingers and pointed at Kuroko. “Ya think our basketball teams ever competed against each other?”

Kuroko sighed. “Kagami-kun, don’t you remember me telling you I didn’t make my team?”

Kagami froze with his finger hovering stupidly in the air. “Um—uh—yeah, I didn’t forget that or anything! Heh heh heh…” He awkwardly scratched his head. “I just thought you kept up with your school’s team or something.”

“Well, it’s true I did…but I don’t really remember if we went against ‘Seirin’. But…” he looked over to watch four guys playing at the far hoop. “I’ll bet my two friends on the team would know.”

“Friends?”

“Yeah, I had two friends who made the team. Their names are Daiki Aomine and Shintarou Midorima. They were both really good. I made sure I attended lots of their games. I may not have made the team, but I supported them and—um, Kagami-kun?”

He had glanced over to see a look of terror etched onto Kagami’s face. His mouth kept opening as if to say something, but then closing again. Kuroko thought he really resembled a fish.

“Kagami-kun? Is something wrong?”

“THOSE TWO?!?!”

“I’m guessing you know them?”

Kagami’s face had contorted into some kind of menacing rage. “Damn right I know them! We definitely played your school. That Aomine bastard thought he was better than me, but he knew damn well I’m better than him. He kept doing this ‘the only one who can beat me is me’ crap. Like who does he think he is? A god?”

“Well, he did watch Death Note…” Kuroko murmured.

“And then there was that Midorima kid. He kept making shots from across the whole damn court. That must be some kind of foul or something I mean COME ON that wasn’t even fair! And what was with his ‘Oha-Asa’—”

“Kagami-kun!” Kuroko interrupted his rant.

“What!?”

“People are staring.”

Kagami stopped and looked around. Everyone was, indeed, staring at him.

A voice called out. “What’s got your panties in a grill, Kagami-cchi?”

Kuroko squinted against the harsh sunlight. Somebody was walking toward them, but all he could make out was a shadow. People had started going back to what they were doing. When Kagami caught a glimpse of the person, he let out a god-awful choking noise that sounded like a drowning cat.

“Oh please not you.”

Kuroko looked over at Kagami with question. “Who is that, Kagami-kun?”

“He’s one of the comedians on this cruise.”

“Is he funny?”

“He’s funny to everyone but me. He’s one of the most annoying people I’ve ever met. His name is—”

“Ryouta Kise, at your service!” the man in question answered for himself. He had blonde hair and piercing golden eyes. Hands on hips and smiling cheekily, he questioned the redhead, "Is Kagami-cchi playing basketball again?”

“Hello, Kise,” Kagami grumbled.

Kise turned to face Kuroko. “Is this the friend you’re always talking about? He’s _sooooo_ cute!!”

“Why are you even here, Kise!?” Kagami’s face was turning bright red. “Don’t you have a show to do?”

“Nooope. That’s not ‘til later tonight. It’s only the afternoon now.”

Suddenly, Kuroko felt arms enveloping him. Kise was hugging him tightly.

“And besides, you never offered to let me meet this ADORABLE friend of yours! What’s your name?”

Kuroko was fighting to breathe inside Kise’s grip. He managed to cough out a reply. “K-Kuroko.”

“Well, you’re _totally_ cute, do you know that, Kuroko-cchi?”

“Kagami cleared his throat loudly. “Let go of him, Kise. Humans gotta breathe sometimes.”

“Alrighty then,” Kise sighed and reluctantly released Kuroko from his embrace. His lighthearted demeanor turned intimidating. “But I’m not leaving until you play me two-on-one.”

“Tch. Fine by me.” Kagami got to his feet, grabbing the ball off the bench. “C’mon, Kuroko. Let’s show him what I’ve taught you!”

* * *

Kuroko thought Kise was pretty amazing at basketball. Maybe _too_ amazing. The moment you thought surely you had the ball, it was gone again. Not to mention, he was facing two people by himself. Even Kagami was having trouble.

Kise, who had just landed another shot, turned to face the two of them. He gave a soft chuckle. “What? You’re not gonna put up a fight?”

Kagami was absolutely fuming. “Don’t give up on us just yet! Damn blonde…” his muttering trailed off.

“Ah. Maybe we should take a break. I need some water. I’ll be right back!” Kise made his way downstairs to the lower deck.

Kuroko turned to look at Kagami, who was still glaring at the ground and mumbling. “Damn that arrogant little cheesehead…thinks he can beat me…who does he think he is…can’t stand that idiot…”

“Um, Kagami-kun?”

“Huh? Oh, yeah?” he seemed to finally realize Kise wasn’t even there anymore.

“Forgive me, Kagami-kun. I know I’m not very good at shooting…”

“Aw no, don’t blame yourself. I’m having a hard time, too…hmmm…that’s it!” Kagami exclaimed in excitement.

Kuroko tilted his head curiously. “What’s it?”

Kagami just smirked at him. “I wasn’t _only_ teaching you how to shoot, now was I?”

Kuroko thought for a moment, then remembered the special play they had been working on. “So…you want to try it now?”

“What better time is there than—oh, Kise’s coming back. Well, you know what to do!” He gave him a wink.

*ba-dump*

_Huh?_

Kagami strode over to Kise, bouncing the ball as he went. “Oi, Kise! If you think that was all we’ve got, then you’d better think again!”

_What…was that just now?_

Kuroko clutched at his chest. His heart was beating rapidly.

_My heart…_

A voice broke him out of his trance. “Hey, Kuroko! We’re playing again. C’mon!”

“Oh, sorry. Coming!”

…

_What is this feeling?_

* * *

Kagami initiated the next play by passing the ball back to Kuroko.

“Remember what I said, Kuroko,” Kagami called behind him. “Now, let’s show this blonde!”

He quickly dashed forward, catching Kise off guard. Before Kise had a chance to figure out what had happened, Kuroko’s hand shot forward and the ball was flying toward the goal. Kagami’s hand slammed it into the hoop. As he landed back on the ground, Kise stood frozen to his spot, a look of shock and confusion on his face. Kagami saw this and snorted.

“What? Surprised by our secret weapon?”

Kise’s voice crept out in a barely audible whisper. “H…how…how did you…”

Suddenly, he threw back his head and laughed. Catching his breath, he glanced around at the two of them with an amused smile.

“I’ve played a bit of basketball in my time, but never have I seen an alley-oop quite like that. This is more like it!” He then looked Kagami dead in the eye. “Now show me more of that kind of play.”

Kagami grinned back deviously.

“With pleasure.”


	4. First Date (part 1)

Kuroko was walking around the pool area by himself. It was morning time and his parents had decided that they wanted to go tanning. Kuroko had left them to wander about since that wasn’t really his thing. He was wondering what he should do when he spotted bright red hair towering over the crowd on the upper deck. Making his way up the stairs, he attempted to follow it.

The area was overflowing with people chatting and laughing. Kuroko slipped between them, trying not to lose sight of the red hair. As he finally escaped the knot of cruise-goers, he found Kagami looking around as if he was searching for something. Kuroko approached him from behind.

“Are you looking for something, Kagami-kun?”

Kagami shrieked in surprise, nearly falling over. He turned toward Kuroko, a look of terror written all over his face.

“K-Kuroko! Don’t do that! You nearly gave me a heart attack!”

Kuroko tilted his head to the side with his usual vacant expression. “Why would you have a heart attack?”

“What do you think?” he spluttered. “You appeared out of nowhere!”

“I fail to see the problem.”

“Damn you, Kuroko…” he mumbled, rubbing his neck.

A moment of silence ensued between the two. They gazed out at the vast ocean, sun shining down on the deep blue water. Everything seemed pretty peaceful to Kuroko, aside from the sound of Kagami fidgeting beside him. He wondered if something was bothering him. After a few minutes, Kagami finally spoke up.

“Hey, uh, Kuroko…well, I was just looking for you…”

Kuroko turned his head to look at Kagami. “Oh? Did you need something?” he asked, full of curiosity.

“Yeah. Well sort of…I wanted to ask you something. Uhhh…” He fumbled with the bottom of his shirt and shifted his feet awkwardly. Kuroko observed that his face was a bit redder than it had been before.

“Kagami-kun? Do you have a sunburn?”

“Eh!? Uhh, yeah! I might. Probably. Maybe I’ve been out here too long. I probably got a sunburn…from the sun…of course. Damn sun is too hot! Eh heh heh…” he laughed nervously.

“Um, what did you want to ask me?”

“Oh, yeah,” Kagami regained a little more composure. Eyes darting around anxiously, he continued. “Well you see, there’s this pretty cool restaurant on the ship. It’s one of the more fancy ones. I’ve been there a few times and if you’d wanna go there…well…you could go…with me.”

He coughed and ran a hand through his bangs. He began laughing nervously again.

“And after that, I could show you my favorite place on the ship. It’s kind of like my thinking place, I guess.”

He paused, then started waving his hands around erratically.

“But of course that’s only if you _want_ to! I mean, you don’t really have—”

“Sure. I’d love to,” Kuroko said, nonchalantly.

Kagami froze, eyes slowly travelling over to Kuroko’s.

“Huh?”

“I said sure. So when did you want to go?”

“Well I was thinking tonight at 7? If that’s alright.”

“Sound good to me.”

“Cool!” Kagami reached into his pocket and pulled out a small slip of paper. He handed it to Kuroko. “That says the restaurant’s name and how to get there." Glancing down at his watch, he gasped. "Is that the time? Well it looks like I have to go now. It’s almost my shift at the café. See you later, Kuroko!”

Kagami dashed off, leaving Kuroko to observe the strip of paper. Apparently, the place was called “Manako’s”. The rest of the paper had some directions scrawled on it. Turning it over in his hands, he discovered a phone number.

_Ah, that’s right. I never got his number, did I?_

He took out his phone and put the number into it, saving it under Kagami’s name. He put it back in his pocket, deciding he would text him later since he was busy right now. Kuroko smiled and leaned on the railing, observing the ocean. This was nice. He would get to spend some more time with Kagami. And this time, they would be doing something other that basketball. This would be the first time he’d eat with someone other than his parents on the cruise.

Suddenly, his pocket started vibrating and ringing. Reaching into it, he pulled out his phone once again. Upon seeing the caller ID, he gasped in excitement.

Pressing answer, he greeted, “Hello, Aomine-kun!”

The familiar voice of his childhood friend came from the other end. “Hey, Tetsu! It’s been awhile. How’s the cruise?”

“It’s been pretty great! I’m having a good time.”

“Huh? That’s strange…”

“What is?”

“I remember you telling me that you never wanted this wedding and that you were gonna sulk the whole way there.”

“Umm, well…”

Aomine’s voice turned into a teasing tone. “Oh? So did Tetsu meet someone? Perhaps…a cute girl?”

“W-What is that supposed to mean?”

“It means exactly how it sounds. And I can practically _hear_ you blushing through the phone.”

Kuroko’s hand flew to his face. “Th-That’s not true!”

Aomine sighed. “Tetsu. You know I can tell when you’re lying. I’ve known you since elementary school. You know you can tell me anything.”

“…Fine. So maybe there is someone.”

“And? What’s her name?”

“Um, it’s Kagami.”

“…Well? You _do_ know her first name, right?”

“Taiga…” Kuroko’s voice came out in a whisper.

“Huh? I couldn’t hear you.”

He repeated it a bit louder. “Taiga.”

There was silence on the other end. Kuroko began to worry that he’d be lectured for liking a guy when Aomine let out a yell.

“THAT JACKASS!?!?”

_…Huh?_

“That guy played our school one time and let me tell ya, he was the most rude and arrogant little punk! He thought he was better than the best—”

_Oh yeah. I forgot they already met before._

Nervous thoughts started to fill his mind. If his best friend didn't approve of his love interest, how could he possibly get into a relationship with him? He felt like Aomine would only pester him about it...no he wouldn't do that, would he? This was only a little basketball rivalry, right? Aomine was still grumbling over the speaker when Kuroko interrupted him.

“Are you mad at me, Aomine-kun?”

It seemed that Aomine sensed the sadness in Kuroko’s voice because he stopped complaining and let out a long sigh.

“At you? Nah, not at all. He may be a jackass to me but if you really like him, then so be it. But if that little punk tries to hurt you, I’ll—”

“I’m sure that won’t be necessary, Aomine-kun. Kagami-kun is really nice to me. But…I don’t think he likes me in that way.”

“What makes you say that?”

“…I don’t know.”

“Then how can you know for sure unless you ask him?”

Kuroko pondered for a moment then answered. “I know! I’ll ask him tonight since I’m going to see him.”

“What’s that?”

“Yeah, he asked me if I wanted to go to a restaurant with him at 7 tonight. I figured it would be fun to do something with him other than play basketball so I said yes…hello? Aomine-kun, are you still there?”

He thought he had been disconnected when a voice exploded in his ear.

“HE ASKED YOU ON A DATE!?”

“Hm? Oh, no I said he asked me to dinner.”

“That’s a date.”

“No, he didn’t say date he said—”

“You idiot! Are you that oblivious? How did he ask you?”

He explained all that happened that morning, gradually realizing himself that everything was tying together. Now it made sense why Kagami had been so nervous when he asked him. His face was getting warmer with every word he spoke. How could he have been so oblivious? Maybe it had to do with the fact that he hadn't really dated a lot of people back in high school. Not many people even noticed his presence, after all, and he definitely wasn't the most popular guy. He was so inexperienced when it came to this kind of thing. He sighed inwardly at his own ignorance. Suddenly, he remembered something else Kagami had mentioned.

“Oh no! What am I going to wear?”

“Tetsu, you’ve turned into a teenage girl…you said it was a fancy restaurant, right? And since it’s a date, I guess you gotta show up in something other than a basketball jersey.”

Meanwhile, Kuroko was panicking and pacing in circles. Passing people stared at him in wonder.

“Look, Tetsu. Just wear some nice slacks and find a nice shirt.”

“I don’t need a suit?”

Aomine facepalmed. “Tetsu…IT’S THE FIRST DATE!”

“Right, you’re right. I’m overreacting.” Pausing, another thought struck his mind. “Do you…think I’m doing something wrong?”

Aomine seemed to know exactly what he was referring to. “Look, Tetsu. You may have been forced into this arranged marriage, but I personally think you should be able to go out with someone before that happens. But you know…maybe you don’t have to go through with this…”

Aomine knew everything about the arranged marriage. He and Kuroko were best friends, so naturally Kuroko would tell him. In fact, he was the first person Kuroko had gone to when his parents revealed the news. Aomine was a very proud person, especially when it came to basketball. Yet the night Kuroko told him everything and broke down, he had been the one to offer him his shoulder to cry on. Kuroko was the only person in the whole world that he would let his guard down for.

Kuroko was grateful to have such a good friend looking out for him.

Kuroko had been trying to avoid these nerve-wracking thoughts ever since meeting Kagami. But all he had done is worry about it and wonder if he was “betraying” his future wife. Then again, part of him thought that maybe he could stop this whole marriage…but how? They were already on the ship making their way to a different country for it. His parents said that Momoi was living there but she was originally from Japan, like himself. Maybe if he had to marry her, they could move back to Japan and that would make him feel more at home.

But then there was the issue that he didn’t even want to marry her anyway. How would he get out of that?


	5. First Date (part 2)

_Maybe this? No this is too casual. How about this? Nah, too fancy…or is it? It’s a fancy place anyway._

Kuroko held the shirt in question against his chest, looking in the mirror. He made a face and sighed.

_Nope. Still too fancy._

Back in his room, he was hunting for the perfect outfit for his date with Kagami. Explaining to his parents why he would to be out for a bit longer tonight had been easy. All he had to do was mention Kagami’s name and they were smiling with delight. The two of them had decided to go to karaoke night. Therefore, Kuroko had the room to himself to fret over clothes like a teenage girl.

He glanced down at his watch. “Oh, what am I even doing? I only have one hour…just pick something, Kuroko!”

And so he dove back into the heap of clothes on the floor, continuing his search.

* * *

Making his way through a corridor of the ship unknown to him, Kuroko searched for the restaurant. Looking down at the slip of paper with directions, he kept looking. However, one thing Kuroko happened to be really bad at…was finding his way around. Even with directions, he was completely hopeless.

For one of his birthdays, Midorima had given him a GPS (apparently, a GPS had been Kuroko’s lucky item for the day). You would think surely a GPS would help Kuroko.

WRONG.

In fact, it got him _more_ lost. The first time he had used it, he had been on his way to the bowling alley. Somehow he ended up at the movie theatre, 15 miles away from the bowling alley. Then again, it could have simply been the GPS’s fault…but Kuroko seriously doubted it.

He turned a corner, still seeing nobody around to ask for directions. He sighed, glancing at his watch: 6:55.

_Oh no. I’m definitely going to be late at this rate. What do I—hang on…I can call Kagami!_

Taking out his phone, he scrolled through his contacts and pressed Kagami’s name. It beeped a few times and then picked up. Kagami’s voice drifted through the speaker.

“Hello?”

“Kagami-kun! This is Kuroko. Well…you see…I can’t exactly find the restaurant…”

“I see…I was wondering about that. But ya know, I see you.”

“Eh? Where are you?” Kuroko spun around wildly, but all he saw was an empty hallway.

“Look through the window.”

_Huh? There’s a window?_

Looking up, he discovered that there was, in fact, a window that lined the hallway. He had been too busy staring down at the paper in his hands to notice what was even around him. Peering through it, he found a bar with lots of people sitting around drinking and chatting. Looking past this room was another long window that gave view to another room. That was where he found Kagami sitting at a table, staring right at him. As their eyes met, Kagami burst into laughter.

“What are you doin’ way over there, Kuroko? Just keep walking down that hallway and you’ll find the entrance to this place.”

“Oh, alright. I’ll be there in a bit then.”

Hanging up, Kuroko continued down the hallway. It was only a few moments later when he realized his face was burning with embarrassment.

* * *

Kuroko sat across from Kagami as they were looking through the menus deciding what to order. Unable to sit still, Kuroko peeked over the top of his menu, curious of what clothing Kagami had decided to wear. He wore a fancy black button-up shirt with grey slacks. It was different seeing him without his chef uniform or basketball jersey. Kuroko had chosen a blue dress shirt (unintentionally matching his hair) and black slacks. Glancing back and forth between his own clothes and Kagami’s, he came to the conclusion that he had indeed chosen the perfect outfit.

“Kuroko? You alright?”

“Huh? What?” He looked up at Kagami’s face, realizing he’d just been staring at his clothes for some time.

_Oh God that must have looked super weird,_ he thought as his cheeks flamed up. 

Burying his face behind the menu, he let out a nervous laugh. “Ha ha ha...oh I was just wondering what you were going to order, that’s all!”

“Hmm, let me see…” Kagami went back to his menu, flipping a few pages. “Well I can’t decide between the ravioli and the steak…”

A few minutes later, the waiter came over and asked if they were ready to order.

“I guess I’ll start then,” Kagami said. “I’ll have the steak with the vegetables on the side.”

“Sure,” the waiter said as he wrote on his little notepad. He turned to Kuroko. “And for you?”

“The chicken alfredo penne, please.”

The waiter took their menus and walked away. A moment of silence later, Kuroko realized he was in a horrible dilemma.

He had to make conversation.

But what was he so worried about? He had talked to Kagami loads of times especially when playing basketball. They saw each other every day and talked nonstop with no problems. In fact, Kuroko felt like he was more open with Kagami than anyone he’d ever known (besides Aomine). Now all of a sudden his mind was completely blank. He had no idea what to talk about. What had they talked about before? Gosh, communicating was difficult.

Finally Kagami broke the silence between them. “So how’s life on the cruise ship been for you?”

“Huh? Oh it’s been really fun so far. I always thought I would get seasick or something but surprisingly, I haven’t. Not once.”

What the hell was he saying?

Kagami just laughed. “Well that’s great. I wasn’t so lucky my first few times on a ship. But over time, you get used to the motion and it doesn’t really bother you. I couldn’t let it bother me since I wanted to work on a ship one day.”

This piqued Kuroko’s curiosity. “What made you want to work on a ship?”

He sat back in his chair, putting a finger to his chin as if deep in thought. “Well it all started with my interest in cooking. I was always experimenting with food when I was a kid back in grade school. I guess it’s ‘cause neither of my parents were that great of cooks,” he let out a chuckle. “One day I just decided to try and make something for dinner with whatever I could find around the kitchen. And for some reason, my family ended up loving it. They said it was the best meal they’d ever had…well I’m sure they were exaggerating, but as a kid it was the best compliment I’d ever gotten.”

The waiter returned with two waters and a bottle of wine. He set all of it down on the table and poured some wine for each of them. As he left again, Kagami took a sip then continued the conversation.

“And like that I kept cooking for my family…by the way, if you’re wondering, I have two younger brothers. Anyway we ended up going on a cruise when I was about eight. It was my first one and I was fascinated by everything, especially the food. Then I decided that I wanted to work on a cruise ship one day. I ended up never letting go of that dream and so here I am, doing my favorite thing in the world every day. And of course on top of all that, I can play basketball whenever I’m not working.”

Kuroko looked down at his hands on his lap. He was happy to hear that Kagami had been able to point his own life in the direction he wanted. Yet he couldn’t help feeling upset about his arranged marriage dilemma. Why did Kagami get what he wanted while he was forced to live a life he didn’t choose?

Looking up again, Kuroko forced a smile onto his face. “That’s a great story, Kagami-kun.”

“So what about you?”

“Eh?”

“Ya know, what was _your_ childhood like?”

“My childhood...” Kuroko had not thought about his childhood lately but now that the topic was brought up, he didn’t know how much of it he should reveal. His youth hadn’t been bad, it was just that he felt like he might accidentally blurt out too much and scare him away. After all, his whole life his parents had been planning his future marriage. He wondered where to start…

“Well back in grade school, I was a really shy kid and didn’t talk to many people. If I tried talking to classmates, it seemed they were always scared of me. Apparently they thought I was ‘sneaking up on them’ or something. I still don’t really know what they meant…”

Kagami snorted from across the table and muttered, “Damn ain’t that the truth…like a damn ghost…”

“What’s that, Kagami-kun? Did you say something?”

“Er-ahem-no, I didn’t say anything! Just go on with your story.”

“Anyway, I couldn’t really make friends easily. But one day this kid walked up to me during recess and asked if I wanted to play basketball with him. I had never really tried sports before so I didn’t know how to go about with his offer. But he said he’d teach me if I wanted. It was weird because no one ever came up to _me_ and asked _me_ to do something. I think I was way too quiet for anyone to even know I was there but for some reason, he saw me. So I ended up hanging out with him and we became really good friends…oh yeah, I never mentioned his name. I’m talking about Aomine-kun.”

At that moment, the waiter came over and set their food in front of them and wished them a good meal. Kuroko hadn’t realized how hungry he was until he smelled the pasta on his plate. They both started to dig in to their food.

A few minutes passed in silence, then Kagami asked Kuroko to continue his story.

“Well I really can’t think of anything notable about my childhood…”

“Aw c’mon. You’ve never had a dream or something?”

“A dream?”

“Yeah! Like how I wanted to be a chef. What have you always wanted to be?”

“I guess…well I’ve always thought about working with kids. Maybe like a daycare teacher.”

“There you go. Now stick with that, if that’s what you really think you wanna do.”

Kuroko smiled as he watched Kagami accidentally drop his fork and ask a passing waiter for a new one. He was glad to hear someone encouraging him to pursue his dream. Surely he could at least choose his own career.

* * *

“So where are we going, Kagami-kun?”

“You’ll see in a bit.”

Kagami was walking ahead of him as they walked along the upper levels on the outside part of the ship. It was nighttime now and not many people were around. Just some young couples drinking and chatting. They walked past them and started up another flight of stairs. After they climbed them, they came to a quiet, secluded area at the back of the ship. Kuroko wondered where in the world they were off to when Kagami stopped at the railing that overlooked the ocean.

“Stand over here, Kuroko.” Kagami patted the railing at his side.

He walked over and observed down toward the water jetting out from the back of the ship. Strangely enough, he had never considered coming to this part of the ship. He found it intriguing watching the water move away from them, a faint breeze rippling through his clothing and hair. It felt really nice.

Kagami looked over at him, smiling. “You see why this is my favorite place on the ship? But the best part,” he pointed up to the pitch-black sky, “is the view.”

Looking up, Kuroko gasped. He had seen stars in the sky before but not like this. A sea of stars glistened beautifully against the shadowy sky. It was a totally different sight when there were no cars or dogs barking or sirens to distract you. Kuroko, who had never really been able to spot constellations, could actually pick some out and name them. The view was so captivating that he didn’t want to look away.

Kuroko tore his gaze away to look up at Kagami. “Thank you for showing me this place, Kagami-kun.”

“Hey don’t mention it. It’s my pleasure,” he said, rubbing the back of his neck. “Ya know, I’ve never really told anyone about this place. So I guess you’re the first.”

“Well then I feel special.”

“I told you this was my ‘thinking place’. I come here when I’m feeling upset or overworked. Or I just want to relax, you know. Just feeling the breeze and watching the stars helps me calm down. And I thought you’d like to see it.”

He shifted his feet a little and fiddled with the railing. “The last week or two…it’s been really fun hanging out with you. Not a lot of my coworkers have a lot of free time to play basketball so it’s been lonely. Then I saw you that night and I’ve finally had someone to play against. And you’re a really nice person. I hope you know that, Kuroko. You may not have had the most popular childhood but that doesn’t matter because you’re an awesome friend to me.”

Kuroko smiled at his words. “Thank you. It’s nice to hear someone say that.”

Kagami shifted a bit closer to Kuroko but Kuroko didn’t notice. He was preoccupied with the stars again. He didn’t notice Kagami’s hand on his shoulder turning him to face him until he said something.

“If it’s alright…”

Kuroko turned his head to ask Kagami what he meant but found himself unable to speak. Kagami had closed the distance between their lips and was wrapping his arms around his waist, pulling him closer. Kuroko was frozen in surprise, his eyes wide as he felt himself enveloped by Kagami. He felt so warm. He felt so nice. It felt like a dream…like it would last forever. And so he closed his eyes and let himself melt into the kiss.

He couldn’t help the sad feeling as the warm sensation stopped. Kagami had pulled away and Kuroko opened his eyes. Kagami let go of him and backed up a little, leaning against the railing and staring at the ground.

“I’m…sorry…I feel like I forced you into that…”

 _Huh? You don’t have to apologize._ But the words didn’t come out. His lips were still numb from what just happened.

“I know you’re probably not into me like that, right? I’m just…sorry, I’ll go now.”

He started to turn and walk away. Kuroko wanted to reach out to him. Stop him.

_Don’t go._

He was walking back toward the stairs. But no words would come out of Kuroko’s mouth. He couldn’t move.

_What are you talking about? Don’t go._

But he was already going. And Kuroko was powerless to stop him.

_What am I doing? Why am I letting him go?_

His lips ached to have that warmth touch them once again. Just one more time. But Kagami was out of sight now.

_Wait. Where are you going?_

_…_

_I want to be with him…then why am I letting him go?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How do like that? I finally put in a kiss scene :D But seriously I was freaking fangirling while I was writing it! Even as the writer, I'm mad at Kagami for leaving poor Kuroko hanging there aww :(
> 
> But what will happen next?  
> *dun dun dun*


	6. At Wits' End

“Tetsuya, are you gonna lay in bed all day?” his mom asked. “I know it’s vacation but it’s the middle of the day and you haven’t so much as moved a muscle since yesterday!”

Kuroko just groaned under the covers and rolled to the side.

“Aren’t you going to play basketball with Kagami today?” his dad asked. “You wouldn’t want to keep him waiting, now would you?”

The covers tensed at the mention of Kagami’s name. There was a cough and then Kuroko’s voice was heard.

“I’m sorry…I think I may be getting seasick. I want to take it easy today.”

His parents insisted on getting him some medicine but Kuroko told them that wouldn’t be necessary. They then assured him that they would stay with him but when Kuroko repeatedly insisted that he was fine, they finally gave in and left him alone in the room.

It was true that he felt sick, but it definitely wasn’t because of the sea.

Two whole days had passed since Kagami had unexpectedly kissed him and Kuroko had not seen him since. Kuroko had searched the basketball court, the lobby, the pool area, the arcade…really he had checked anywhere he thought Kagami would be. He had not, however, dared to go near his workplace. He knew he would find him there at sometime or another. It was because of this fact that he avoided the café.

At one point, he had tried going to the café but ended up changing directions pretty quickly. He would have full intention on finding him and asking why he left but would just chicken out in the end. Kuroko didn’t feel like he was brave enough to see him quite yet. It was strange, since he had always thought of himself as a straightforward person./p>

And now here he was lying in bed questioning his entire existence.

He could see why Kagami wouldn’t want to see him…but why he himself couldn’t go to Kagami…he didn’t understand. Maybe he just felt awkward from what happened. He was too embarrassed to face him. Surely that was the answer.

 _It’s because I know I don’t deserve him,_ the thought crept into his mind, jeering at him.

Kuroko sat up quickly. What was that supposed to mean?

_I’d only be a burden to him. His life is fine without me._

Kuroko dove back under the covers. He grabbed his pillow and hugged it to his chest.

_Yeah, that’s true. He has his life all figured out. I’m just a passenger on this ship and he works on it. I’m freaking engaged! If he knew all about that, he wouldn’t want to be around me. If I was with him, I’d only be lying to him…I’m wrong for him…_

He fished through the bundle of covers, searching for his phone. He found it and pressed a button, squinting at the sudden harsh light from the screen. He scrolled through his messages and found the ones he sent to Kagami. None had been replied to. He didn’t expect him to respond anytime soon. He wondered if he should just delete his contact…

He sighed, turning off the screen and throwing it down somewhere toward his feet. He stretched a little and tried to push the troubled thoughts out of his mind.

* * *

_What the heck am I doing here?_

It was late now and Kuroko found himself having wandered into a comedian’s show. He was sitting in the second row of the audience from the stage. The comedian onstage was telling a joke about magicians. A certain comedian named Kise.

“—and the magician had pulled me up for a magic trick saying how he wouldn’t do anything to ‘hurt me’ or ‘cause me discomfort’. And do you know what he did? He turned my hair blue! BLUE!”

Kuroko was trying to figure out what was so funny about the joke when he realized Kise was looking at him. Kise pointed a finger in his direction.

“I’m telling you it was as blue as that boy’s hair. That boy right there. I’ll tell you that’s no ‘magic trick’, that’s freaking hair dye that they poured on my head in five seconds behind a curtain.”

The audience was roaring with laughter while Kuroko was surprised from being suddenly pointed out.

“As for ‘causing me discomfort’…that was murder. He completely murdered my hair and I couldn’t go out for at least two weeks. No offense to the gentleman in the front,” he paused to wink at him. “But blue is just not my color. Too flashy.”

The people around Kuroko laughed and hooted. He found it ironically funny himself seeing as Kise was just a flashy person in general. People were drawn to him whether he wanted it or not.

When the show came to an end, the people started filing out. For some reason, Kuroko found himself staying behind, glued to his chair. Eventually, someone came and sat next to him.

“Sorry I had to point you out there, Kuroko-cchi,” Kise laughed. “But I mean, come on, it went perfectly with my story. You just happened to be sitting there. Like it was _fate_ or something.”

Kuroko smiled. “Well it was no big deal to me. Although I’m not really used to so many people noticing me at once.”

“But you had me there to accentuate your presence. How could they not notice?” he struck a glamorous pose. Sparkles seemed to radiate from him. “Did you enjoy the show?”

“I certainly did, Kise-kun. I didn’t expect you to be such a funny guy.”

Kise began spouting tears. “I don’t mind hearing that kind of insult from Kagami-cchi but hearing that from Kuroko-cchi is just heartbreaking!”

For the second time that day, Kuroko flinched as if he had been hit.

Kise stopped whining and observed Kuroko. “So how are you getting along with Kagami-cchi?”

Kuroko flinched again. Hoping Kise hadn’t noticed his sudden movement, he faked a smile.

“Getting along well.”

Kise frowned and sighed. “That’s what I thought you’d say,” he mumbled, standing up abruptly. Grabbing Kuroko by the arm, they began marching up the stairs to the entrance. Kuroko struggled against his grip.

“Kise-kun? Where are you taking me?”

Within a few minutes, they were outside and walking up some stairs. Kuroko hoped that his clumsiness wouldn’t kick in anytime soon or he’d end up on his face at the pace Kise was going. They made a few more turns and then Kuroko realized where they were headed. His arm was freed as they both walked through the entrance to the basketball court. There were no other people around at the late hour. Kise slung the bag he had been carrying off his shoulder onto a bench. He rummaged through it and pulled out a basketball, passing it to Kuroko.

“Play me.”

“Huh?”

“I said play me,” Kise repeated.

Kuroko swallowed hard, shifting uncomfortably. The last thing he wanted to do at the moment was play basketball. It reminded him of…Kagami. But seeing the expression on Kise’s face, he didn’t think he could say no. Kise wasn’t _asking_ him. He was _telling_ him.

They dribbled around one another, stealing from each other, attempting to shoot past each other. But Kuroko didn’t feel as into it as he had before. He ended up letting most of Kise’s shots through and not making many of his own. After several minutes, Kise dropped the ball. He went silent. Kuroko was beginning to worry when he heard a barely audible voice.

“What do you think you’re doing?”

Kuroko tilted his head, confused. “Kise-kun?”

His voice became a bit louder. “I don’t get it. I mean you were getting better. Why can’t you take this game more seriously?”

But he didn’t stop there. He sounded angrier by the second.

“You may be better at passing but I _know_ you can shoot better than that. Why are you acting so shifty? All I did was mention your name to Kagami-cchi yesterday and he was acting like the name was foreign. Then I mention his name to you and you start acting weird about it. I mean, what’s with that?”

Kuroko was stunned. He had noticed this? When had he first noticed this? He wanted to ask but he couldn’t find the words. Instead, Kise continued on but dropped his voice a bit.

“Did something happen between you two?”

Kuroko still couldn’t bring himself to answer. He thought he would start choking up halfway.

“Ya know…the reason I’m so emotional about this...well, it’s just that Kagami-cchi was starting to change. He was becoming _happier_ …”

Kuroko’s ears perked up at this. Did he just hear what he thought he’d heard?

Kise chuckled a little. “He wasn’t always so happy-go-lucky…well then again he’s still not. But anyway he used to be all mopey after he got off work. Sure he’d go play basketball sometimes but then he’d end up complaining to me later about how he had no one to play against…P.S. he’d only do that when he was drunk enough,” he added, winking playfully. “But then he met you and now you’re all he talks about. Actually he won’t shut up about you. It’s an interesting switch between our personalities.”

“…He…really talks about me?”

“Well _yeaaaaahhhhhh_. You know he likes you, right?”

“Um…yeah…”

“Then what are you asking for? You guys need to make up or I’m gonna have ole ‘mopey face’ to deal with again.”

Kise bent over to pick up his ball and went over to retrieve his bag from the bench. He put the ball in the bag and slung it over his shoulder. He made his way over to Kuroko and stopped, putting a hand on his shoulder. He made one last statement before leaving.

“Don’t worry, you’ll be fine. Good luck.”

The hand disappeared from Kuroko’s shoulder. Kuroko was staring down at his feet, in a deep concentration. He pondered for a while and eventually came to a conclusion.

He didn’t have much time left on this ship. This problem had to be solved. Today.


	7. Confessions and Apologies

Kuroko sat on one of the benches in the basketball court. It was dark out and the lamps were the only source of light around. He felt lonely and cold as he stared at his phone. His thumb trembled, hovering above the ‘send’ button. It took all his power to force himself to press the button. The screen read ‘message sent’. He sighed heavily and put it away in his pocket. He wondered if he really should have sent the text.

_“Kagami-kun. We need to talk. I understand if you’re tired from work and need to sleep. But if you could…meet me at the basketball court tonight.”_

He sat there kicking at the ground restlessly. Could he really go through with this? But if he didn’t solve this problem soon, he didn’t know if he would ever have the motivation to do it. Kise had told him all he needed to hear to make him realize what he had to do. Besides, there were only five days left of the cruise. It was now or never.

He wondered how Aomine was doing. He hadn’t talked to him since that phone call where they talked about Kagami. That was right before the date. It had only been a few days ago but it felt so long.

Kuroko came to a sudden realization. He hadn’t even told Aomine about any of this yet. Why had he not called his best friend for advice? Then again, he had been moping around for the past few days. It was no wonder he didn’t think to seek his help. But even if he had called him, all Aomine would be doing was booking a jet to land him on the ship to come beat up Kagami. He decided it was better that he hadn’t told him yet.

Kuroko brought his knees up to his chest. It was getting chilly and he hadn’t brought a jacket. He hadn’t realized it would get this cold at night in the summer. He wondered how long he would wait there. Would Kagami even show up? Probably not. He had ignored all his other texts. Heck, he had probably blocked his number. Maybe he would just sleep here for the night. He felt too tired and depressed to move anyway.

As he started to nod off, he felt a slight push against his arm. He ignored it. It was probably just the wind. But then there was another push, this time a bit harder. Surely, it was just his imagination. Suddenly, he felt himself falling over. He landed with a THUMP on his side. He opened his eyes, fully awake now. Sitting back up, his eyes travelled over to find Kagami standing next to the bench, a puzzled look on his face.

“Were you going to sleep here?”

“Huh? I’m…not so sure about that…”

“You sure looked like you were.”

“Well…um…wait, why did you come?”

Kagami turned his head quickly to the side, avoiding Kuroko’s gaze. “W-well obviously I couldn’t just let you wait out here all night. You might catch a cold or something…and your parents are probably worried about you…”

Kuroko moved over a bit on the bench to make room for Kagami. He sat down, still refusing to look directly at Kuroko. Kuroko coughed a little in the awkward silence. Building up a little courage, he convinced himself to say something.

“I went to Kise-kun’s show tonight. I found it pretty funny, actually.”

“Oh, you did? Well I guess I should give some words of praise or something but considering it’s Kise we’re talking about…”

“Well he does seem to enjoy his profession,” Kuroko went on as if Kagami hadn’t said anything. “And he seems to do well at it, considering how much the crowd laughed.”

“Laughing at his stupidity,” Kagami grumbled. “Ow!”

Kuroko had flicked the center of his forehead. “No need to be rude, Kagami-kun.”

Rubbing his head, Kagami asked a question. “So…what did you want to talk about?”

Kuroko fidgeted at the sudden change in subject. He didn’t know how to start this conversation. “Um…it’s about…the kiss…”

When Kagami didn’t reply, Kuroko went on.

“You ran away afterward but I never got a chance to tell you…how I felt about it. Well you see…I—”

As soon as he was about to say what he had been dying to tell him, his voice faltered. His heart was beating rapidly and he was starting to sweat. He coughed a little and tried again.

“I…liked it.”

He didn’t dare look over at Kagami’s face. He felt embarrassed, as he was revealing something so personal. Waiting for some kind of response, he was met with silence. It was quiet for the next minute. When Kuroko could bear the apprehension no longer, he finally turned to look. Kagami’s face was one of disbelief.

“You…what?”

“I said…I liked it.”

“But you—I thought—and I—” Kagami tripped and stumbled over his words, flustered.

“Well you never did give me a chance to tell you anything. You were gone in a second.”

“Oh…well then I’m pretty stupid,” Kagami mumbled to himself.

Just as he was starting to feel more at ease, Kuroko had a fleeting thought.

_But I’m engaged. I have to tell him._

He mentally shook his head. That would be crazy, he had just settled things between them.

_I’m lying to him. I’m wrong for him._

The thoughts were tormenting him and it wasn’t like he hadn’t already thought this through. This was what he originally planned to do tonight. He would set Kagami straight and then tell him the truth. It was the only way he would get closure from this dilemma.

Just as he made up his mind, he felt his hair being caressed. He almost jumped at the unexpected contact. The hand gently moved over to his cheek, turning his head. As he looked into Kagami’s eyes, his mind went blank. All he wanted now was to feel that warmth again. And just as he was wishing it, his wish was granted. Kagami had pulled him close and they were kissing all over again. Kissing…but…wait…

_Tell him the truth._

Shit. He had almost forgotten what he was there for. All the guilty thoughts were flooding back to him. But he was getting more lost in the kiss.

_I’m a burden to him._

He didn’t want it to stop. Yet, he knew it would have to. But this is what he wanted, right? To be with Kagami?

_His life is fine without me._

Kagami brushed his lips against Kuroko’s neck. Kuroko shivered at the unfamiliar sensation. It was new to him…but he found himself liking it. He felt small pecks trailing along his collarbone. But with each little kiss, he felt more thoughts piling up.

_How can I enjoy this right now? Later, he will yell at me for this…he will tell me I was using him…_

The lips trailed back up to nibble on his ear. He felt hot breath in his ear as he heard Kagami whisper, “Kuroko…I’m really glad you like me that way. Because I like you, too.” He gave another little kiss right under his ear. “Do you want to be with me?”

Kuroko shuddered at the question because that was all he could do, considering what was happening right now. Should he listen to the taunts in his mind or should he listen to Kagami? Should he forget all about his parents and Momoi and the wedding? Maybe he should just shut it all out and…

He couldn’t take it anymore. It was all too much.

“I’m engaged!”

Kuroko felt Kagami freeze against his neck. The only noises were the wind and the soft waves. Kagami’s arms began to loosen around Kuroko’s waist. He slowly let go, backing up to look at him. Kuroko didn’t want to look at his face now though. He was afraid of what he would see…he knew he would break down right there…

Finally, Kagami spoke. “What do you mean?”

Kuroko swallowed hard, staring down at his feet. “I…have a fiancée. I didn’t know how to tell you, or if I’d ever need to. But then this happened…and now I have to. I can’t keep lying to you.”

He paused, wondering if he should mention it…he decided it didn’t matter much, so he did.

“It’s an arranged marriage. My parents decided it for me. It’s not like _I_ can stop it. At the end of this trip, I’m getting married in Hawaii. So I guess this is pretty much goodbye, Kagami-kun. I’m sorry for wasting your time.”

He stood up and started to leave. His eyes were burning. Knowing that the tears were coming, he wanted to get out of there as soon as possible.

He found himself incapable of moving. Kagami had grabbed hold of his wrist, preventing him from leaving. Kuroko finally looked back to see Kagami with his face to the ground. Kuroko didn’t know what to expect. Was he going to yell at him?

“…Arranged marriage?” Kagami’s voice came out in a low whisper. The grip on Kuroko’s wrist tightened just a little. “Is this…what _you_ want?...Just tell me that.”

Kuroko’s eyes widened in surprise. He had never been asked such a thing before. No one had ever asked if _he_ wanted this wedding. A strange kind of happiness flooded through him.

“No…not exactly.”

Kagami looked up, giving him a small smile. “Then if it’s not what you want, can’t you just call it off?”

Kuroko’s stiffened at the sight of Kagami’s hopeful expression. If only he knew… His parents wouldn’t just let him cancel the wedding. Especially not when they were this close to it. Looking at Kagami was only making him hurt more inside. Kuroko tugged his arm from Kagami’s grip, letting it fall to his side.

“I wish I could.” He turned away. “I’m sorry, Kagami-kun.”

And with that, before Kagami could protest, he was running to the exit. He was running away from the person who didn’t deserve to deal with his problems.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And before Calicolor knew it...she was writing all this angst. Kuroko is on an emotional roller coaster, now isn't he?
> 
> Thanks to everyone reading!!


	8. Arrival

The last five days of the cruise swept by quickly. Kuroko avoided Kagami and blocked his number in case he tried to contact him. He didn’t go to the basketball court and meet with Kagami like usual. He never went to the Flaming Hot Café, and made up lame excuses to his parents when they suggested going there. Most of the time, he just stayed in his room, hidden away.

Part of him told him he should enjoy the rest of the cruise. Act like none of this happened. But despite pushing everything about Kagami away from him, he was all he could think about. He just couldn’t let it go…no matter how hard he tried. So he ended up just lounging around, feeling depressed about his irreversible situation.

It was finally the last day of the cruise. It was one in the afternoon and the ship would be arriving at Hawaii around three. Kuroko lay sprawled on his bed, staring up at the ceiling. Only two hours and he would be leaving Kagami behind…forever. He stretched his arm out in front of him, opening his palm to the blank, white ceiling. His eyes were half-open, a bored gaze across his face. Maybe this was for the best.

He grasped at the air, closing his hand into a fist. What was he even doing here right now? His parents had gone out to have one last meal on the ship while he had made up some stupid excuse that he wasn’t hungry. Still, they had insisted on at least bringing him something back.

Kuroko brought his fist back down to rest on his chest. He turned his head to stare out the porthole window. The sky was a bright shade of blue with clouds scattered here and there. He sighed. The weather was so nice while he was having the most unpleasant thoughts. In just a week from now, he would be getting married right under that joyful sky. All his friends and family would be there. He smiled a little to himself at the thought of Aomine being there. At least he could cry to his best friend about this later if he needed to. Even Midorima said he would make time to attend the wedding. Kuroko laughed at the thought of Midorima bringing his lucky item along. He wondered what it would be this time. A giant cat plush? A fishing pole?

He frowned when he thought about having to marry a complete stranger. But maybe she was nice. The way his parents described Momoi made her sound like a queen.

‘Oh miss Momoi is the most darling girl you’ll ever meet! She has this stunning face and vibrant attitude. You’ll fall absolutely in love with her,’ is what his mother says.

‘Her father runs this great business and her mother works there as well. They all get along wonderfully and they’re all such pleasant people. I’m sure everything will work out,’ is what his father says.

Despite all these compliments regarding Momoi, Kuroko still found his mind drifting toward another person…

* * *

“Passengers may begin exiting now. Please watch your step when departing from the ship. We hope you enjoyed your stay,” a woman’s voice spoke from the speakers on the ceiling.

Kuroko and his parents were waiting in line to get off the ship. His parents were smiling at one another and talking about their favorite things they did while onboard. Meanwhile, Kuroko stood next to his suitcase looking around nervously. He didn’t know how much longer he could bear waiting in this line. Contrary to belief, he was completely visible out in the open like this. What if Kagami were to show up and see him? He wanted this to be over and done. He had already settled things between them and didn’t need something else happening just as they were leaving.

Every voice around him just brought him more apprehension, thinking it was Kagami’s. He tried to look normal since his parents were standing right in front of him, but he couldn’t help jerking his head every which way. He just wanted to be off the ship as soon as possible. The line was moving exceptionally slow, unfortunately.

“Kuroko-cchi?”

He jumped at the voice from behind him, spinning around in surprise. It was Kise. His parents hadn’t seemed to notice. He started feeling even more nervous…what if Kagami told him—?

“So how did you like your stay here? Sad to go?”

“Oh, I, um…it was nice,” Kuroko stuttered.

“Is that so?” Kise gave this knowing face, grinning at him. He then leaned forward to whisper, “So how did it go with Kagami-cchi?”

Kuroko eyes widened ever so slightly. _So he doesn’t know after all._ He felt sort of relieved. Now he could make up some lie and get the hell out of there.

He put on a fake smile. “We’ve sorted things out. So things are good.”

_Well he wasn’t necessarily lying when he put it that way._

Kise’s obliviousness was obviously working to his advantage today since he grinned even more. “That’s awesome, Kuroko-cchi!”

His parents seemed to finally notice Kise’s presence. His dad was the first to say something.

“Well now who is this? Is this another one of your friends, Tetsuya?”

Kuroko tensed up. He realized he didn’t want to be a part of this conversation. What if they started talking about Kagami? He quickly introduced them all to one another then made a break for the restroom.

“I’ll be right back!”

* * *

They were finally off the ship and were making their way to the hotel they had booked. It was a really expensive one right next to the shoreline. They loaded their luggage onto a taxi and then got in themselves. Kuroko gazed out at the open ocean passing by. He turned around in his seat to take one last look at the cruise ship.

_Goodbye, Kagami._

They pulled up to the hotel, which towered over them. Kuroko looked up, searching for the top, squinting at the harsh sunlight.

The three of them rolled their luggage to the elevator inside. They traveled up to the fourth floor. Walking through the hallway, they found the door labeled 405 and opened the door with the key. As they entered, Kuroko noticed how spacious the room was with its two king-sized beds, couch, armchairs, television, dresser, and finally a balcony overlooking the ocean on the other side of the room. Kuroko dropped his luggage by one of the beds and strolled over to the balcony. Resting his arms on the railing, he closed his eyes, breathing in the salty air. A comfortable breeze ruffled his hair. He opened his eyes and realized he could see the cruise ship from where he stood.

_I wonder what Kagami is doing…_

He shook his head at the sudden thought.

_No, I don’t care about that. I wonder when that ship will leave though…_

“Tetsuya!” his mother’s voice snapped him out of his thoughts. “We were thinking of looking around for a place to eat. Come along now.”

* * *

That night, Kuroko lay awake in bed, staring up at the ceiling. He looked over to see his parents fast asleep. Sighing, he turned over onto his side trying to go to sleep. But all he could do is think about Kagami.

Kagami. Kagami. Kagami.

Why couldn’t he just forget him? He was supposed to be thinking about his future with Momoi. But thinking about that just made him remember his nervousness toward meeting her. And then the wedding in one week.

When was he meeting her again? Oh, yeah. Tomorrow. Perfect. He would have to spend his day getting acquainted with his new “family”. Well, at least it would take his mind off of Kagami…at least for a little while.


	9. Meeting Momoi

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So so so sorry that I've taken this long to update *bows head apologetically*. Recently, I've been really busy with classes and homework so it's been a bit hard finding the time to write.
> 
> That...and I've been trying to decide how I should end this story. In all honesty, I started writing this fic without a definite ending in mind (hehehe). But NO WORRIES! I plan to finish this sometime soon.
> 
> Thanks for reading!! :)

Here it was. The day Kuroko would finally meet his fiancée, Satsuki Momoi. Kuroko had woken early in the morning and remembered this, causing him to forget about getting anymore sleep. He turned to check his phone on the bedside table for the time…6am…

He stretched and decided to just lie there staring at the ceiling for a while. He wasn’t looking forward to today. Everything was going to go wrong, he just knew it. Maybe she would hate him so much that she wouldn’t even want to marry him. Then again, maybe that would be a good thing…no, he shouldn’t get any crazy ideas. His parents would never let him see another girl ever again if he tried anything…not that that was necessarily an issue for him.

Rolling out of bed and dragging a blanket along with him, he slowly crawled across the floor. Resembling the world’s most awkward caterpillar, he made his way toward the balcony. As quietly as he could so as not to wake his parents, he opened the glass door and crawled through, leaving it open just a crack. He sat on the white concrete huddled in his blanket. There was a cold breeze outside since it was early morning. He was glad he had brought his blanket. Peering through the railing, he saw the cruise ship once again. It was still there, sitting at the dock, taunting him. Laughing at how he was powerless to make it go away. Laughing at how he knew, deep down, that he wished he could just get back onboard and see Kagami.

He sighed to himself, pulling the blanket tighter around his body.

“This is going to be a long morning…”

* * *

“Tetsuya, please don’t play with your food,” his mom said. “You need energy for this exciting day!”

Kuroko sat with his parents at a table in the downstairs breakfast area. He was twiddling his fork on his plate, pushing his scrambled eggs and sausage around. As much as he wanted to eat, his stomach didn’t agree with him. He was too nervous about meeting Momoi.

His dad noticed this as well. “C’mon, son. I know you’re nervous, but you should at least _try_ to eat something.”

Kuroko made a pouty face, and turned his head to the side. He silently grabbed his apple juice and sipped. It was the only thing he had been able to ingest so far this morning. When his parents continued to observe him, he took his fork and stuffed some eggs into his mouth. They didn’t taste as bad as he had expected, and so he attempted to eat some more. His parents smiled, satisfied.

“So,” his dad began, “we’ll be meeting with Miss Momoi and her parents today. Her father suggested that we meet at the entrance to the festival beginning today.”

Kuroko looked up curiously. “Festival?”

“Yes. Honolulu is having a luau for the next couple of days. They thought it would be nice to get acquainted at this event. And of course we could get a taste of what living in Hawaii is like.”

Kuroko’s mom nudged him with her elbow. “Aren’t you excited, Tetsuya?”

“Sure, Mom. That sounds fun.”

He wasn’t lying or anything. He had never been to a luau before. It sounded exciting and intriguing to him. And best of all, there would probably be no awkward or quiet moments at a noisy festival.

* * *

It was afternoon-time when Kuroko and his parents were on a taxi heading to the luau. Kuroko nervously fiddled with the end of his shirt and looked out the window. Why did it have to be now? Everything was happening too fast. Every type of anxiety was hitting him all at once. Could he really go through with this?

“Here we are,” the taxi driver said.

_Oh no…not yet._

They pulled up to a curb and his dad paid the transportation fee. Thanking the driver, his parents started getting out. Kuroko sat there for just a bit longer, taking a moment to breathe.

_Just calm down, Tetsuya. You’re only meeting the woman you’re marrying…oh God, this is only making it worse._

“Tetsuya? Are you coming?”

“Yes, Mom. Just give me a second.”

Finally, he opened the door and was greeted by lively music and the sounds of conversation. He closed the door and found himself observing his surroundings in awe. Many people were wearing brightly-colored leis around their necks. Smiles lit up the place, spreading about a comforting atmosphere. There were a few hula dancers prancing around welcoming people. The entrance was decorated with many different kinds of flowers and beads. Kuroko gaped. This was only the entrance, so he could only wonder what it looked like inside.

Suddenly, he felt something swoop around his neck. He looked down and noticed flowers around his own neck.

“Hello!” one of the dancers greeted him. “How are you? Do you like Hawaii so far?”

“Oh um, yes. Hawaii seems like a nice place.”

She smiled at him. “That’s great. I hope you enjoy the luau!” She skipped off to greet someone else.

He looked down once again to inspect his lei. It was woven together with flowers that were blue, purple, and white. It looked pretty in his opinion. He wondered how long and how much work it took to make one. His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of his parents talking to someone. Looking over, he felt his heart skip a beat.

They were here.

He saw a dark-haired man with glasses standing in front of his parents. He wore a floral shirt with dark jeans. Well, he didn’t look exactly how Kuroko had expected an “important businessman” to look. But then again, this was a casual festival, not a formal one. The woman next to him had light pink hair that was pulled back into a ponytail. She wore a dark green tank top and jean shorts. They both seemed to be chatting happily with his parents, so he figured they were nice people. But wait…where was—

“Tetsuya! Come over here and introduce yourself. You don’t want to keep her waiting, now do you?”

It was when his father moved to the side that he finally set eyes on her. The girl was about his height, maybe a little shorter. She had the same shade of light pink hair as her mother’s and it reached down to her waist. Crimson red eyes pierced his own. Her attire consisted of a yellow floral top along with a black pleated skirt and sandals. They both just stared at each other in wonder until Kuroko’s mom spoke up.

“Go ahead, Tetsuya. Introduce yourself.”

“Ah, hello there. My name is Tetsuya Kuroko. I am your fiancé,” he tried his best to sound confident and cool.

Then the girl spoke up, smiling at him. “I’m Satsuki Momoi, your fiancée. Nice to meet you, Tetsu-kun!”

They continued around introducing one another and talking for a little while. Kuroko, all the while, feeling more anxious and awkward with each passing second. Eventually, his dad told him he could go explore the luau with Momoi if he wanted to. He gladly took that escape and wandered off with Momoi tagging along right behind him.

She seemed like an interesting girl, but he still didn’t know if they would get along. So far, the only words they had exchanged were their greetings. Now they were walking along looking at all the different sights like the hula dancers dancing onstage, the tables of food (along with their enticing smells), the endless flowers and decorations lining the walls, and the overwhelming amount of people. It was a bit difficult for Kuroko to weave through people now that he had to keep up with someone else. Normally this would be easy for him since he was like a shadow. But he didn’t imagine it would tide over well with either his or Momoi’s parents if he lost sight of her in this big crowd. So he had to raise his voice to say “excuse me!” in order to get people to move aside for the two of them.

After making their way through another group of people, he spotted an empty table. He looked back at Momoi, who was still struggling to keep up with him.

“Would you like to sit down?”

She looked up at him. “Oh…sure.”

They both took a seat on opposite sides of the table. A few minutes later, Kuroko realized that even at a noisy festival…there can still be awkward silences. In the midst of all the talking and laughing, the two of them ignored the other’s gaze. Momoi twirled her hair around her finger while Kuroko poked and prodded at a flower on the table. Kuroko didn’t know what to do. He didn’t consider himself to be very skilled at starting conversations. But then again, he had been able to keep plenty of conversations with Kagami...

Oh, jeez…was he really thinking about Kagami right now? This had to be the worst possible time to think about him. But, as usual, he couldn’t stop once he started. He found himself wishing to play basketball with Kagami again. He wanted to talk about trivial things and laugh at stupid stuff. It wouldn’t work unless it was with Kagami…

He almost forgot he was with someone until they said something.

“How do you like Hawaii?”

“Huh? Oh. Hawaii seems like a nice place to be.”

“Mm hmm…”

“I like all the flowers here.”

She smiled brightly. “Is that so? I love the flowers here, too. My favorite kind are plumerias. Like the ones around your neck.”

“So…uh…what do you like to do?”

They went on like this, making conversation. They asked each other questions about family, friends, and hobbies. Kuroko actually found himself smiling and laughing along with Momoi. He came to the conclusion that she wasn’t all that bad. Maybe this marriage would be alright after all.

But would it really? Would he really be happy with all this in the end?


	10. The Luau

“Oh, so you wanted to join the basketball team in high school, Tetsu-kun?”

“Yeah, but I didn’t really make the cut…”

“Awh, why not? I bet you’re super good at making shots and stuff!”

“Yeaaaahhhh, about that…”

Kuroko and Momoi were still sitting and talking at a table at the luau. They had managed to keep a conversation going for about twenty minutes. At some point, they had both run out of things to ask about each other, so Kuroko decided to tell her about his high school life. One thing led to another and, lo and behold, he was talking about basketball.

“So what got you into basketball?” Momoi asked, looking very interested in his story.

“Well, I have this friend who introduced it to me when I was in grade school. His name is Aomine. Actually he’s going to be at the wedding, so you’ll be able to meet him. Anyway, he asked me if I wanted to play basketball with him at recess and I had a good time with him that day. From then on, we became best friends.” Kuroko leaned on his elbow, gazing past Momoi. “Actually, now that I think about it, I haven’t talked to him in a while. I have some stuff to tell him…”

Kuroko realized he had probably said too much and mentally facepalmed himself. He hoped she wouldn’t ask what he had to tell Aomine. But instead, she just smiled.

“It sounds like you two are really good friends.”

“Yeah, we are. I wonder what…A-A-Aomine-kun!?” Kuroko stammered, standing up quickly.

He was looking past Momoi when he recognized two people walking in their direction. One of them was carrying something big that looked out of place at the festival. On closer inspection, he realized it was…a giant stuffed bear? The other one was striding over with an ecstatic expression, grinning straight at Kuroko.

“Yo, Tetsu! How’s it going?”

“Aomine-kun! Midorima-kun! When did you guys get here?”

“Tch. We got here just this morning, nanodayo,” Midorima said, pushing up his glasses with his free hand.

“Yeah, we decided we would come earlier and surprise you. The look on your face was totally worth it!”

Kuroko realized he had been staring wide-eyed at them, mouth gaping. He then came back to his senses and bounded forward toward Aomine. They gave each other a brotherly hug, smiling and laughing.

“I’m so glad to see you guys!” Kuroko exclaimed.

“Hmph, I could have come later…” Midorima muttered.

“Ehhh? What’re you goin’ on about, four-eyes?” Aomine sneered. “Who was the one griping on the plane about when we would get here because they wanted to see someone they hadn’t seen in so long?”

Midorima’s face turned a bright shade of red. He quickly turned his face to the side. “I have no idea what you’re talking about…nanodayo.”

“Well, I’m really happy to see you both,” Kuroko smiled.

“By the way, Tetsu-kun. Don’t you wanna introduce us to someone?”

“Oh yeah!” He spun around, almost forgetting the girl sitting quietly at the table. “Momoi, this is Aomine-kun…the guy I was telling you about. And this is Midorima-kun. They’re my friends from school and they were part of the basketball team. Guys, this is Momoi, my…fiancée.”

It was the subtlest sound, but Aomine had caught the slight break in his voice when he had said “fiancée”. He felt Aomine shift his eyes toward him, observing him. The other two hadn’t noticed, thankfully. The group of them sat down at the table and Momoi asked Midorima why he had a giant plush with him. As Midorima was explaining to her the concept of “lucky items”, Kuroko was busy avoiding eye contact with Aomine.

He knew Aomine was suspicious of him. Why wouldn’t he be? They hadn’t called each other since before Kuroko’s date with Kagami. Aomine currently didn’t know anything about what happened afterward. The kiss…the fight…the avoiding…none of it. It was Kuroko’s little secret right now. Of course, he wanted to tell Aomine, but now he just felt nervous thinking about it. How should he tell him? Well, he knew one thing for sure. Aomine would definitely corner him and pester him about it before the wedding day.

“‘Oha-Asa’? What’s that?” Momoi was asking Midorima.

“Oha-Asa is only the most important thing ever if you want to be safe in this dangerous world we call ‘Earth’. It is a daily horoscope that is attributed to inform you of your lucky item of the day. That way, you can be sure that your day will run smoothly.”

“Oh…alright then,” Momoi seemed to be trying to wrap her mind around his words. “So, what if I don’t watch Oha-Asa?”

“…”

Midorima made some sort of expression as if he were pain. He looked away from the table.

“I am surrounded by peasants.”

_“Anyway,”_ Aomine interjected. “Why don’t we go get some food? I’m starving.”

“Fine. I am hungry, too, nanodayo.”

The four of them got up and headed over to the long tables of food. Countless pots and plates of different foods covered the tablecloth: fish, chicken, pork, assortments of fruit, tons of pineapple, rice dishes, and more. Kuroko had no idea where to start since everything looked so good. Then something else caught his eye…

It was some weird, purple-colored, paste-pudding…stuff…in a bowl. It looked really intriguing to him, and he liked the color purple. He figured it was probably some regular pudding with purple food coloring mixed in it. He got some of the pudding and put it on his tray along with other food.

They all sat back down at the table with their trays. Each of them shared some stories while they ate. All of the food Kuroko had gotten tasted great in his opinion. Then he remembered the purple pudding, which he had saved for last. He took his spoon and scooped up some of the pudding, raising it to his lips. As soon as the pudding hit his tongue, he instantly regretted it. He started coughing wildly. What was this disgusting taste? It had the most bland and salty flavor complemented with a slimy texture. It was like he was eating Elmer’s glue straight from the bottle.

The others looked over in surprise at the dying Kuroko.

“Hey, Tetsu. You alright over there?” Aomine asked.

“Oh-ack! Yugghhh…yeah, I’m okay. What the heck is in this pudding? It must be spoiled or something.”

The sound of laughing came from beside Kuroko. Momoi seemed to be amused by his statement.

“Pudding? Is that what you think it is? Silly, that’s poi.”

“What’s poi?”

“It’s a popular food here in Hawaii. It’s made from this thing called a Taro plant. It has a, well…a unique taste. It’s sort of plain and tastes slimy. Don’t worry, you’re not alone in hating poi. I guess you just have to have a taste for it. Even I don’t like it much.”

Meanwhile, Aomine was in the background laughing about the whole situation.

“Gah hah hah! Kuroko thought it was pudding! I can’t believe he didn’t know what it really was! I mean did you see his face when he ate it? Hah hah hah!”

“Have you ever tried poi, Aomine?” Midorima looked at him quizzically.

“Huh? Well, no. But what about you?”

“I have tried poi before. It was once my lucky item.”

“What the hell? You had to make some random Hawaiian delicacy just for your Oha-Asa horoscope?”

“No, of course not. I went and bought it at the convenience store down the street.”

“They actually had—aw never mind, forget it. Well, did you like it?”

Midorima made an appalled face. “No…it was the most revolting thing I have ever tried to eat. Just thinking about it makes my stomach ache.”

Momoi pushed the bowl of purple paste toward Aomine. “Well? Go ahead, try it. Then you can know what it tastes like.”

Aomine glanced around at each of them. When his eyes landed on Kuroko, the bluehead spoke up.

“Don’t be a chicken, Aomine-kun.”

“I DON’T WANNA HEAR THAT FROM YOU! Alright, fine! I’ll try it.”

Aomine picked up his spoon and slowly dipped it into the poi. Hesitantly, he opened his mouth and tried it. The other three were expecting a loud outburst and a wide-eyed expression to follow. When it didn’t, they looked around at one another in curiosity. All three mouths dropped as Aomine began eating more of the slimy paste.

“H-how can you eat it? It’s so nasty!” Momoi gagged.

“Hm? Whadd’ya mean? This tastes awesome!”

They couldn’t believe the sight they were seeing. Of all the people, why did _Aomine_ take a liking to the poi?

Kuroko had a fleeting thought. “Hmm…it was probably from all the glue he ate as a kid. Aomine-kun always did like the taste of Elmer’s.”

“Oi, Tetsu! Don’t go spreading around rumors like that!”

“Everyone in grade school already knew about it. Midorima-kun already knew about it,” Kuroko waved his hand nonchalantly. “And I would have told Momoi about it eventually. So does it really matter if people know you like glue?”

“Yeah, it matters! ‘Cause it sounds…weird.”

“You’re the one eating purple glue right now.”

“Tetsu, I swear I will climb over this table and—”

“Tetsuya!” Kuroko heard the sound of his mom’s voice coming from behind him. “Oh, did your friends decide to come to Hawaii earlier? That’s great!”

“Are you all becoming friends?” Kuroko’s dad appeared next to him with Momoi’s parents.

“I’m glad you are all enjoying each other’s company,” Momoi’s dad said with a smile.

“Anyway, Tetsuya,” Kuroko’s mom turned to him. “We came by to let you know that we were planning on going back to the hotel in an hour. Is that okay?”

“Okay then.”

For some reason, Kuroko felt Aomine staring at him again. What was the deal now? Was he still mad about the glue thing? He just ignored it and waved his parents off again. When he decided to sneak a glance toward Aomine, he was already looking off somewhere else again like normal.

The next hour passed by rather normally. They all talked some more and shared some more stories. They continued teasing Aomine about his love for glue. Then, Kuroko’s and Momoi’s parents finally came by to pick them up. The group walked out of the entrance and they all said goodbye to each other for the day. Momoi and her parents were the first to leave in a car. Then Midorima, with his giant bear plush, started to get into a taxi. When Aomine didn’t follow, he told him he would get to their hotel later. Midorima seemed to know what he meant and just nodded, telling the driver they could leave.

Now, the only people left were Kuroko and his parents and Aomine. Kuroko was confused as to why he wanted to stay behind when Aomine turned to his parents.

“Mr. and Mrs. Kuroko. I know you have all had a long day. But, if you two don’t mind…” he threw his arm around Kuroko’s shoulders. “…Tetsu and I have some catching up to do. Would it be alright it we were to explore the town for a little while? I promise to return him in one piece.”

Kuroko’s mom smiled at him. “Oh, you know I can’t say no to you. Go ahead. Just don’t be out too late.”

Yep. That was just like his mom. She loved and adored Aomine to bits. There was no way she would refuse him a favor like this.

“We’ll see you later then,” Kuroko’s dad said as he got into the backseat of the taxi that had just driven up. His mom got in as well and then they were gone.

Kuroko and Aomine were left alone on the sidewalk. It was getting darker out, since it was around seven at night. The moon was visible and a gentle breeze rustled their hair and clothes. Kuroko didn’t know if he should break the silence or not. As he was formulating something he could say, Aomine turned and began walking in the direction of the shoreline. Assuming he expected him to follow, he trailed along behind him.

He felt nervous since Aomine was being eerily quiet and not telling him what they were going to talk about…but he had an idea of what it was…

They were now walking in the sand beside the waves. Kuroko walked steadily behind him, waiting for some sort of question regarding…Kagami. He knew it was coming. There was no way he would let him off for not even mentioning the redhead he had gotten “acquainted” with on the cruise ship. Aomine knew when something was wrong. He knew when something was troubling Kuroko. They were so close and knew each other so well.

“So, Tetsu. Do you wanna tell me what happened?”


	11. A New Companion

“So, Tetsu. Do you wanna tell me what happened?”

Kuroko stopped walking when he heard the abrupt question from Aomine. He had known this is what he would ask, but now that he heard the question out loud, he couldn’t find an answer to give in return. He felt himself getting more nervous as the seconds passed in silence. The zipper of his jacket suddenly seemed to be a very interesting thing to look at. Aomine halfway-turned to look back at him.

“Well?”

Kuroko opened his mouth to speak, but then realized how dry his throat felt. No words would come out. He coughed and turned his head toward the ocean to stare at the rising and falling waves.

He heard a heavy sigh come from Aomine. “You know, you can be really stubborn sometimes.”

Kuroko started to feel guilty upon hearing the disappointment in Aomine’s voice. How could he not tell _Aomine_ of all people?

“After the date.”

Aomine whipped his head back around at Kuroko’s sudden words. “Hm?”

“It all happened…after our date…” He looked over to see Aomine watching him with calm eyes that encouraged him to go on. And so he continued.

“The date went so well and it was so much fun. Kagami and I talked about lots of stuff, and I had a really good time with him. Then, he took me to this place on the ship. It was just the two of us. We were just talking a little, then he…he…kissed me…and the thing is I was _okay_ with it. But then that just felt so _wrong_ to me, considering I’m getting married and all.”

He peeked over at Aomine. He simply stood there with his hands in his jacket pockets, gazing out at the vast ocean.

“But then, after that, he left me there and didn’t talk to me for a few days. I felt…horrible. I couldn’t do anything about it. Then I felt like maybe I should just _not_ do anything about it. I’d have to leave him eventually anyway, right? Then I found myself near a friend I made on the ship. His name is Kise. So Kise sort of helped me realize some stuff I needed to do…”

Kuroko started making random shapes in the damp sand with his shoes. It was helping to keep him calm while spouting this story. He concentrated on curving his foot to make a circle.

“So I met up with Kagami to talk to him. I…I guess you could say it happened again…”

“What happened again?” Aomine finally threw in a question.

“You know, like…the kissing…and stuff…”

Kuroko felt his face heating up at this kind of conversation. He messed up a triangle he was drawing in the sand, one of the lines running off in a completely wrong direction. He laughed nervously, looking down so that his bangs covered his face.

“A-A-Anyway!” he blurted, in an attempt to draw Aomine’s attention from what he just said. “I told him the truth about the wedding and stuff. And I haven’t seen or talked to him since then. So…that’s that.”

Kuroko concluded his story and it was quiet once again. The only sounds came from that of the wind blowing and the waves crashing down onto shore. Kuroko didn’t have the courage to look over at Aomine. Even though it was his best friend, he had just told someone what only he and Kagami knew. It was like he had told his biggest secret, and that secret was the most embarrassing and awkward story ever. He had no idea how his best friend was going to react. He then heard a long intake of breath. Here it comes. The questions. He felt Aomine’s eyes on him.

“And you’re okay with all this?”

“Yeah…”

“You’re _seriously_ okay with this? Are you _really_ , Tetsu?”

“Of course I am, Aomine-kun. Why wouldn’t I be?”

He felt steps making their way toward him. “If you’re really fine with it, then you’ll be able to say it while looking me in the eye.”

Now Kuroko slowly looked over and up at Aomine’s face. His face was a serious one, not unusual coming from him. But Kuroko liked it more when he was smiling. It was less menacing. Unable to read his expression, he tried remembering what it was he was supposed to say again. And so he did the most “Kuroko-like” thing he could possibly do.

“What was it I was supposed to say again?”

Aomine just stared down at him in disbelief. He then facepalmed, groaning.

“Oh my God, Tetsu. If you can’t even remember what you’re supposed to say, then you obviously don’t mean it.”

“B-But I—”

“I don’t wanna hear it, Tetsu,” Aomine waved his hand in Kuroko’s direction. “I know you’re lying and there’s nothing you can do to make me believe differently. You’re my best friend. I know you.”

He put a hand on Kuroko’s shoulder. “I know you must be feeling pretty bad right now. So if you wanna let it all out, you can go ahead.”

Kuroko had no chance to question anything as he was pulled into Aomine’s comforting embrace. He was about to politely decline his offer when he found his vision becoming blurrier. He was a bit shocked to find himself crying into Aomine’s jacket so quickly. Then again, he had been keeping all of these feelings bottled up for at least a week. The tears wouldn’t stop flowing from his eyes and so he decided to just let it happen. He let it all out, just like Aomine told him he could do.

Why were all these feelings rushing back to him at once? What good would they do for him?

* * *

The next day, Kuroko was strolling around downtown by himself. He had a few days that he was free to spend however he wanted to, so today he had decided to explore Honolulu. Later, he would go to visit Aomine and Midorima over in their hotel.

The weather outside was warm and sunny, once again. Was the weather always this nice in Hawaii? Kuroko smiled to himself. If that was the case, then he could play basketball all the time. That is as long as his “marriage duties” didn’t keep him too busy. Now that he thought about it, wouldn’t he have to get a job? Of course, both he and Momoi were _already_ well off in terms of wealth, but he highly doubted he would be able to just sit around at home all day. Well, he actually could do that…if he desired criticism from his relatives.

He started wondering what kind of job he would search for after all this wedding business was done. Oh yeah! He suddenly remembered how he wanted to work with kids. Then a conversation he had had with Kagami before popped into his head...

 

_“Aw c’mon. You’ve never had a dream or something?”_

_“A dream?”_

_“Yeah! Like how I wanted to be a chef. What have you always wanted to be?”_

_“I guess…well I’ve always thought about working with kids. Maybe like a daycare teacher.”_

_“There you go. Now stick with that, if that’s what you really think you wanna do.”_

 

They had talked about it on their date, if he recalled correctly. They had exchanged lots of memories about themselves that day. They had shared things about themselves…talked about their childhoods…their plans for the future…

He suddenly realized that his face felt overly warm. As he passed by a shop window, he was surprised to see his reflection blushing back at him. Was it all because he had been thinking about Kagami just now? He quickly turned his head away from the window, staring down at the sidewalk with his hand against his face.

“What’s with that…?”

He walked another block or two with nothing but thoughts of Kagami. He then heard a small noise.

“ARF!”

“Huh?” Kuroko looked around him but only saw people walking past him, going about their business. He decided he must have imagined it.

“ARF!”

There it was again! It was somewhere behind him! He spun around but saw nothing out of the ordinary. He concentrated really hard so that he could listen for where the next sound came from.

“ARF! ARF!”

The sound seemed to be coming from the curb, but all he saw when he looked down was a big box that was empty—hang on… _was_ it empty?

Sure enough, when Kuroko moved to get a closer look, he discovered something within the box. It was…a dog? He looked to his left, to his right, then to his left again. There didn’t seem to be anyone with this dog. Actually there didn’t seem to be anyone even _aware_ that this dog was here. He crouched down and examined the dog. He wasn’t wearing a collar and there was nothing to identify him. His fur was black and white and he had bright blue eyes. He appeared to be some sort of husky mix.

The more Kuroko looked at the dog, the more he felt sorry for it. Someone seriously abandoned the poor thing on the side of the road? He slowly reached out a hand toward the dog, who turned to look at him, tail wagging. He happily jumped up against the side of the box and nudged Kuroko’s hand onto his head. Kuroko was surprised to see how friendly the little dog was. He smiled as he stroked his fur. He looked around one more time and when he still saw nobody searching for the dog, he asked the dog a question.

“Would you like to come with me?”

The dog just yipped in reply.

“I guess I’ll take that as a ‘yes’ then.”

Kuroko picked up the dog and held him against his chest.

“Hmm…what should I name you?”

He thought about it for a minute, and then came to a conclusion.

“How about Sparky? Does that sound good?”

“Arf!” the little dog barked.

“Okay then. Sparky it is.”

It was only after he had walked a few blocks when he pondered…how was he supposed to look after this dog? His hotel didn’t allow pets, and he had no idea how his parents would react to him bringing in a random stray. For the record, he thought the stray looked rather clean and healthy for being in a box on the sidewalk.

Kuroko always did like dogs. He had owned one during his elementary and junior high days, but he hadn’t had another since then. If he was seriously going to take care of this dog, he thought he should at least buy some dog food and a collar for him. So he found a pet store that was conveniently close to where he was, and went in.

After buying a few necessities for Sparky, he wondered how he could possibly keep him. Then a thought struck him. He pulled out his cell phone and started calling someone.

“Hello, Tetsu?” a voice answered on the other end.

“Aomine-kun. Hey, so you see…I was wondering about something.”

“Hm? What is it?”

Kuroko could hear the suspicion in his voice. He had no idea how Aomine was going to react to his question, but he decided it was worth a shot, for Sparky’s sake.

“Does the hotel you’re in allow pets?”

A few seconds passed by in silence. Finally, there was a reply.

“Tetsu…what did you do?”

“I _may_ have taken in an abandoned dog…”

“You mean a stray.”

“He needs a home, Aomine-kun. I couldn’t just leave him there in a box. I was the only person who even noticed him.”

There was a long sigh on the other end. “Tetsu…you know when you put it like that, I can’t tell you ‘you can’t keep him’. Anyway, yeah. This hotel allows pets.”

“That’s great! I was wondering if _maybe_ you could _kinda sorta_ let him stay over there? It would only be until the wedding is over and I move in with Momoi and stuff.”

He heard the sound of Aomine humming in deliberation.

“Pleeeeeeeaaaaasssse?” Kuroko used his best begging voice.

“…Fine. I guess if it’s for my best friend.”

“Yes! Thank you so much!”

“But you have to supply its food and stuff.”

“No problem. Can I bring him over now? I’d like to show him to you and Midorima-kun.”

“Sure. Come on over.”

“Okay. I’m on my way!”

* * *

“So this is the dog, I presume?” Midorima said, looking down at the dog in Kuroko’s arms.

Aomine was observing the dog quite intensely. Kuroko looked over at him in confusion.

“Is something wrong, Aomine-kun?”

“Doesn’t something seem familiar with him? It’s as if—oh my God.”

“What?”

“He…he has the exact same…”

Midorima even seemed to be catching on to what Aomine was saying. He moved closer, pushing up his glasses. Kuroko, meanwhile, was in the dark.

“What? What’s wrong, guys?” Kuroko questioned.

“He has the same…” Midorima began.

“…eyes…” Aomine finished.

Kuroko looked down at the dog in his arms. “Hm? Yeah, he has blue eyes.”

The other two seemed to nearly fall over at Kuroko’s obliviousness.

“Can’t you see that he has the same eyes as you?” Midorima exclaimed.

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“I’ve got it!” Aomine snapped his fingers. “We’ll name him Tetsuya #2!”

“But I already named him Sparky.”

Aomine gave him a look. “He looks just like you, how could we pass up this opportunity? Besides, Sparky is such a cliché name for a dog.”

“But he’s my—” Kuroko started.

“Anyway, you should give us some more information so we can know how to take care of him.”

“We?” Midorima interjected. “I don’t remember agreeing to this dog-sitting business, nanodayo.”

Aomine turned to look at him. “Psssh. Oh don’t act like you don’t like dogs, Midorima.”

“I am not acting. I really don’t like them.”

“Huh? But everyone loves dogs.”

“An unfortunate event happened during my high school days, causing me to change my perception of them. It was after basketball practice one afternoon. I returned home to find a dog in front of my house. It was relieving itself on a package addressed to me. That package contained my lucky item for the next day. You would not—” he paused dramatically. “—understand how difficult it was for me to endure the hardships of the following day.”

Aomine, Kuroko, and Sparky all simply stared at him. Aomine burst into laughter.

“Ah hah hah! Wow, Midorima. That is quite the story you have there.”

“It is not funny! That dog ruined my lucky item! I shall never forgive their kind.”

Kuroko stood there watching Midorima bicker at the laughing Aomine. He looked down at Sparky and laughed quietly to himself. He really had the funniest friends.


	12. The Wedding

The first week in Hawaii passed by pretty quickly. A little too quickly than Kuroko would have hoped. It was now Sunday, the day of the wedding. And, as expected of the timid bluehead, he was currently a nervous wreck. He was in the small building a little ways from the beach, where the wedding and reception were to be held. Aomine, his best man, was accompanying the terrified groom in the changing room and trying to calm him down.

“Oh God. Oh God. Oh God. What do I do? Am I doing anything right? I don’t know if I can do this,” Kuroko was spouting words out so fast, they were almost unintelligible. He sat in front of a mirror, rocking back-and-forth in his chair.

“Oi, Tetsu. Calm down. Look at me.”

Kuroko stopped momentarily to look around at Aomine standing next to his chair.

“There’s nothing to worry about. Your family and Momoi’s family has taken care of everything. There’s nothing else you need to do.”

“Yeah. Except marry the girl…” Kuroko muttered rather bitterly.

“Whoa, hold on now,” Aomine pulled up another chair and sat down next to Kuroko. “You’re still having thoughts like this on your _wedding day_? I thought we went over this. If you really don’t know about this, you don’t have to force yourself to get married.”

Kuroko simply sat there looking sullen. This was definitely out of character for someone as well-mannered as him. It was the nerves and pressure that were making him act this way.

Aomine gave him a stern look. “Look, I knew you were lying before when you said you were okay with this, but seriously. Why are you doing this to yourself? You don’t have to…” His voice transitioned to a more concerned tone. “Please, don’t force yourself…”

Kuroko seemed to get ahold of his bearings, because he finally looked Aomine in the eye.

“I’m sorry. I’m being a burden right now, aren’t I? I don’t mean to sound so angry…”

“It’s okay, Tetsu. You’re not a burden at all. I know you’re just nervous. But…are you sure about this?”

Kuroko didn’t reply. He didn’t break eye contact, but he didn’t seem too intent on giving an answer. Aomine raised his eyebrows and lowered his chin, giving him that ‘you’d better give me a real answer’ look he had mastered. Kuroko sighed, closing his eyes. Sometimes he thought Aomine could be scarier than his mother when she was in a bad mood. He opened his eyes again.

“I can do this, Aomine-kun.”

Aomine merely turned his head and grunted apathetically. Kuroko thought it probable that he didn’t believe half of what he’d just said. A moment later, he felt Aomine’s eyes on him again.

“You know, that ship leaves today. Just thought I’d let you know…”

“Is that so…”

He wasn’t at all surprised. It would have to leave sometime soon, since the tourists who had come over would need a way back to Japan. Although, there was some small part within him that had hoped that _maybe_ Kagami would come searching for him. But that was all just some fairytale wish he had been harboring. Maybe it could happen in some kind of story or anime, but that kind of thing would never happen in real life.

“So I guess he’s gone for good now,” Kuroko absentmindedly said aloud.

Aomine observed him sadly. Then, he noticed something wet sliding down his face.

“Hey, hey, hey. You can’t go crying on your wedding day. I don’t want this to be the last sight I see of you before we go out there.”

He edged closer to the bluehead, making him turn his chair to face him. He reached out a hand to wipe his face with his sleeve. Then he ruffled his hair, playfully.

“Where’s that smile I’ve always known and loved? I want to see that face. It’s your best one and you know it!”

Kuroko looked up halfheartedly at his best friend. He saw the look of reassurance on Aomine’s face, and found himself starting to smile little by little. Soon enough, they were both laughing cheerfully. Why they were laughing? No reason. No reason at all. It was simply seeing Aomine’s familiar grin that had caused Kuroko to feel a bit better. He would be forever happy if even this was the last memory they had together before he was to be married. He felt happy in this moment. He felt joy.

* * *

Kuroko felt like he would collapse from anxiety any moment now. It was a nice, sunny day out on the beach. Lively chatter sounded throughout the audience of Kuroko’s and Momoi’s family and friends. Kuroko was currently standing next to the priest in front of all of them. Behind them was a beautiful arch covered with bunches of colorful flowers. Off to one side stood the groomsmen and on the other, the bridesmaids stood holding their bouquets. Aomine stood the closest to Kuroko, glancing over at him now and then. The wedding would start any moment now. They were just waiting for Momoi to appear.

_Okay. This is it. The big day. I’m sure everything will be alright. Breathe in…breathe out…just relax…_

Suddenly, the wedding music began to play, erasing all traces of composure from his mind. He turned his head slightly to see Momoi all the way at the end of the isle next to her father. She wore a stunning white dress that was knee-length along with white high heels. She wore a couple of leis around her neck. She smiled at her eye contact with Kuroko, who proceeded to plaster on a small smile of his own. Of course, it was a _forced_ smile…

The two began walking down the isle in his direction. The graceful movement of how she walked…the flowing of her dress in the wind…the glint of the sun against her fair skin…this should probably be the happiest moment of his life…

The walk down the aisle felt like it would last forever. It felt as if time had slowed down…and Kuroko was fine with that, if it meant it would take just a little bit longer before he was married. He was fine with that last short minute of freedom…freedom from the responsibility he had never chosen.

Was he being selfish? Heartless? Not exactly. What if he was completely fine with having responsibility? What if he had wanted it with someone else? Someone who happened to be the same gender as he was. Someone who he shared interests and memories with. Someone he actually liked…maybe even loved…no, someone he _definitely_ loved. He felt his heart clenching at the desires running through his mind.

Soon enough, Momoi and her father had reached him. Her father gave her a kiss on the cheek and then turned to make his way to his seat. Momoi took one of the leis from around her neck and turned to Kuroko, placing it around his neck. The two faced one another and turned their heads to look at the priest.

“We are gathered here today to witness the marriage between these two people…Tetsuya Kuroko and Satsuki Momoi.”

The wedding went on as any other wedding would. The priest would go on and on with his speeches about why people got married, why there was marriage, the love and devotion in marriage…

At some point, Kuroko had started looking around at the crowd, probably due to the priest’s boring speech. It wasn’t like he was the only one though. Even the crowd was looking around. He had even caught Momoi averting her gaze as well. His eyes passed over familiar faces. His mother…his father…Midorima…his aunt and uncle…cousins…then suddenly…

_Huh?_

For a second, Kuroko could have sworn he had seen Kagami’s face. But there was just no way he would be here. The ship had already left. He wouldn’t be here to see his wedding. Nevertheless, Kuroko found himself searching through the crowd once again.

And there he was. Kagami was really there, sitting in the very back row.

Kuroko’s eyes caught onto Kagami’s. Widening his eyes in surprise, his breath hitched. He had not been imagining it after all. They stared at one another as everything around them was blocked out.

The wedding was now the last thing on Kuroko’s mind. All he could do was wonder why Kagami was here at the wedding. Should he say something? Would Kagami say something? No, probably not. He didn’t look like he was here to cause a scene. But then why was he here? Before he knew it, he found himself backing away from the sight of Kagami. He suddenly wanted to get away from everyone…away from the wedding. He had finally made up his mind. He didn’t want this. He couldn’t do this.

“Tetsu?” Aomine’s voice brought him back to reality. “What’s wrong?”

Kuroko looked over to see his best friend’s concerned expression. He looked around himself, realizing he had indeed been backing up quite a bit. The priest had stopped talking. The crowd’s attention had been brought back and they were all staring at him in confusion. Momoi’s face was the most puzzled of them all. All he could manage was a brief sentence to her.

“I’m sorry, Momoi…”

Then he took off running. He could hear the many gasps and apologies being said to the audience. He stumbled a bit as he ran along in the sand. He didn’t know where he was going. All he knew was that he didn’t want to be there anymore. He had to escape from this wedding he didn’t want. But most of all, he had to get away from Kagami. The sight of him was only putting his mind in more of a jumble. He ran along the beach for quite a while, trying to forget everything. Surely Aomine would come for him eventually. So for now, he wanted to find someplace he could be alone.

When he thought he would fall over from exhaustion, he came to a halt and bent over with his hands on his knees. He gasped for air and tried to hold back the tears that he knew would come soon. He collapsed onto the sand, trying to get some of his energy back. Kuroko did have a pretty low stamina when it came to running.

“What the hell—have I done?” he wheezed. “How can I ever face—my family—again?”

The anticipated tears began making their entrance as he finally caught his breath. They fell down to the sand, making little dark spots. He suddenly had the urge to write something in the sand with his finger. Not knowing where he was even going with this, he found himself creating letters.

 

I

L O V E

K A G A M I

 

He sniffled a bit at his work. Closing his eyes, he let out a long sigh. Why did even he write this? What good would it do for him anyway? Here he was, alone on the beach, writing useless love notes to nobody. He felt such a hopeless mess right now. When he opened his eyes, his gloominess turned into puzzlement.

_What is…this?_

Oddly enough, he had opened his eyes to find more words written in the sand right next to his own.

 

I

L O V E

K U R O K O

 

“Hey,” an unexpected voice made Kuroko jump.

He slowly lifted his head to see Kagami crouching down in front of him. There was a look of concern on his face. So Kagami wrote this?

“W-Why are you here…Kagami-kun?”

Kagami scratched the back of his head nervously. “Sorry…do you not want me to be here?”

“No…well I mean I don’t mind, but…I mean…that’s not really my point. Didn’t your ship leave already?”

“Probably did. I don’t really care either way. I just wanted to see you again. Even if it was just this once.”

“What about Aomine-kun?” Kuroko whipped his head left and right, but saw no sign of him.

“Don’t worry, I told him I would come find you. Took a bit of convincing but he finally gave in,” he chuckled softly. “I guess he was just as surprised as you were to see me there.”

“But…just…why?”

Kagami sighed. “I couldn’t just let things stay the way they were. I mean, you said you liked me in the same way and everything. How could I forget about you?” He reached out a hand and wiped the tears from his face.

“But what do I do now?” Kuroko mumbled, clenching his fists on his lap. “I ditched my own wedding and who knows what they’re all discussing over there now? I—I don’t know what to do…”

“Are you okay with what you did?”

“Well, yeah. I’ve finally decided that I just can’t go through with this arranged marriage. Even so, I don’t know what to do about my parents. What are they going to say? Will they even speak to me? What if they knew about… _us_? Would they even allow—”

Kuroko found himself unable to voice his emotions further, because someone’s lips were on his own. A hand was reaching around the back of his head, bringing the two closer together. It felt like Kagami had been kissing him for at least a minute. When they parted, Kuroko felt that his anxiety had been reduced by a great deal.

Kagami pointed down at the words that lay between them in the sand. “Don’tcha see what we wrote? All you have to do is go with that. Don’t ignore the feelings you have for me…I mean, I never stopped loving you. If you want to tell your parents about us, then go ahead, I’ll be right beside you. But I’m just saying that if they don’t approve, don’t let that decide your fate. You’re an adult. You can make your own decisions.”

Kagami’s encouraging words struck something within Kuroko. Barely realizing it, he flung himself toward Kagami, knocking him backward in the process. The two fell over into the sand, Kuroko clinging to him in a loving embrace. Kagami was a bit surprised to see the bluehead taking the initiative, but he wasn’t complaining. He decided to simply hug him back as well. They stayed like this for a while, until Kuroko lifted himself from the redhead’s chest.

“I’ve decided…” Kuroko began. “I want to tell my parents.”


	13. The End of All Things

The aftermath of Kuroko ditching the altar seemed to be taking its toll. The parents of Kuroko and Momoi were busy making apologies to the many confused and upset guests. The priest was long gone, supposedly having another wedding to attend. Aomine and Momoi were off away from the crowd talking to one another. He was most likely comforting her, considering all that had happened.

Kagami observed the scene along with Kuroko, who was huddled behind a palm tree, shivering in fear.

“Tch. Kuroko…what happened to all that confidence you had a while ago?”

“W-What are you talking about, Kagami-kun?” He poked his head out from behind the tree to scope out the area. “I-I-I’m not nervous at all!”

“Yeah. And I’m Todd Haberkorn. C’mon, quit hiding.”

Kuroko looked up at the redhead. “Hey, I’m a big fan of his, you know. Wait…what do you mean you’re Todd Haberkorn!?”

Kagami flicked Kuroko’s nose with his finger.

“Oww…what was that for?” Kuroko rubbed his nose.

“Cause you’re being stupid.”

“But you said—”

“Why the hell would I be an English-speaking voice actor!?!?”

“…You have a point there.”

Kagami groaned. “Hey, why don’t we do what we’re here to do?”

“Okay…” Kuroko straightened up, stepping out from behind the tree. He took a deep breath and let out a long sigh. “I’m ready.”

“I’ll be right behind you,” Kagami said, reassuringly. “I’m sure it’ll be alright.”

Kuroko led the way as the two made their way through the crowd, which had gradually decreased in size. A few guests nudged one another, turning and pointing silently in the bluehead’s direction.

 _Wow. First time so many people have noticed me at once,_ Kuroko thought, glancing at the onlookers from the corner of his eye.

As Kuroko’s parents came into view, they stopped talking to a couple and turned to look in his direction. Their expressions were not that of anger, but it looked like they wanted answers. They made subtle hand gestures at the remaining people around the area. They took the signal and immediately filed away from the beach, making their way toward the small building off in the distance. This left only Kuroko, his parents, and Kagami to talk alone. Momoi’s parents were off a little ways out of earshot, giving the four space to talk. They seemed anxious for answers as well. Aomine and Momoi continued their own conversation far away from them. They did not seem to notice Kuroko and Kagami’s arrival quite yet.

As the two reached Kuroko’s parents, his father immediately threw out his long-awaited question.

“Do you intend to explain what happened back there, Tetsuya?”

Kuroko shuffled uncomfortably at the question.

“Don’t worry, sweetie. We’re not mad at you,” his mother said. “We just want to know the reason you left.”

Kuroko collected every bit of courage from within himself and looked from his mother’s eyes to his father’s.

“Mom. Dad. I want to apologize for what I did back there. But I have a good reason for all of this…”

He felt Kagami’s presence next to him. Remembering that he wasn’t along, he felt more confident.

“I’m going to honest with you. I never wanted this arranged marriage in the first place. I know that I probably should have told you earlier, but I couldn’t bring myself to let you down.”

He looked down at his shoes. “I wanted you to be happy for me. I wanted to have your approval for something as serious as marriage. And since you approved of Momoi, I figured it would be alright. But after meeting her, I realized that…I just don’t like her in a romantic way. Don’t get me wrong, I think Momoi is a really nice girl. But all I’ll ever see her as, is as a friend.”

Kuroko looked back up at his parents, who were listening intently. “Now, with all that said, I would like your approval for something else…”

He pointed a finger toward Kagami, who had been patiently waiting. “I am in love with this guy. I would like you to allow the two of us to be together.”

The expressions that appeared on his parents’ faces were those of shock. Their eyes widened and their mouths dropped. The sight would be almost comedic if it weren’t for Kuroko’s seriousness toward the matter. For a few moments, they just stared at him, dumbfounded. Then they quickly shut their mouths, realizing how they had reacted to their son’s confession. Kuroko shut his eyes, bracing himself for their yelling.

To Kuroko and Kagami’s surprise, his parents began laughing.

“Forgive me, Tetsuya,” his dad coughed out. “It’s just, you were so blunt. I didn’t expect something like that!”

“Sweetie, I’m so sorry,” his mom laughed. “It’s just the way you said it. ‘This guy’…bwah hah hah!”

Kuroko and Kagami just stared at the couple rolling in laughter. They slowly turned to look at each other, confusion etched on their faces. This was definitely not the reaction they had expected, especially not from Kuroko’s rich, elegant parents.

The two finally ceased laughing and turned to face them once again.

“No, but we really are sorry for reacting like that,” his dad said, still grinning. “It’s just been so long since we’ve seen you say something so serious with that blank expression of yours. No offense, but it just looks really funny from our perspective.”

His mom smiled. “But don’t worry. We love you all the same! You have our approval.”

Kuroko felt his heart leap. Wait…did she really just say that?

“You…you…you’re okay with…?”

“Of course we’re okay with it! We can’t simply throw our darling son to the curb over something like this. You can’t help who you love, right?”

His dad gave him an apologetic look. “We only arranged a wedding for you because we wanted the best for you. We’re sorry for not asking how _you_ felt about it first.”

“I’m really happy you chose such a nice young man like Mr. Kagami here!”

 _Yep. She’s a sucker for him,_ Kuroko thought.

Kagami grinned, blushing at her compliment. “Don’t you worry, Mr. and Mrs. Kuroko. I’ll take good care of your son.”

As Kagami began a conversation with the two, Kuroko remembered that there was somebody else he needed to talk to. He told the three he would be back in a bit, then walked away in the direction of the pink-haired girl in the distance. She and Aomine noticed the bluehead approaching and turned their attention to him.

As Kuroko came to a stop in front of them, Momoi gave him a big smile. She, strangely, looked far from upset. Apparently, Aomine had done his job of making her feel better.

“Oh, hello, Tetsu-kun! Did you want to talk to me?”

“Oh, well, um…yeah.”

“Could you give us a minute, Dai-chan?”

“Sure.” Aomine gave a knowing look to Kuroko before walking off.

“You seem happy,” Kuroko awkwardly began.

“Yeah. Well, I was just talking to Dai-chan. He was cheering me up after…well…what happened. But you see, he kinda explained why you acted that way. So now, I understand!”

“You…do?”

“Yeah! You love Kagami over there, right?”

Kuroko’s face heated up at her sudden words.

“See? That’s all the confirmation I need. No hard feelings, okay?”

“Hang on, Momoi. I would still like to say that I’m sorry for what I did to you. I should have told you before the wedding. But, instead, I probably made you feel really embarrassed back there. Please forgive me.”

Momoi smiled sweetly. “I forgive you, Tetsu-kun.”

Kuroko sighed in relief. He had gotten a lot off his chest and was starting to feel better.

“And don’t worry about my parents. I’ll explain everything to them for you.”

“Huh!? N-No, Momoi! Seriously, I can apologize for my—”

She shushed him, quite literally, by putting her finger to his mouth.

“No, no, no. I’ll do it. You’ve already been on a rollercoaster up until now, I’m sure. Let’s just say I’m doing you a favor…”

She started skittering away from him, as if to escape before he could change her mind. She looked back at him once more.

“…as a friend. I’ll see you around, Tetsu-kun!”

Kuroko just stood there, dumbfounded, as he watched Momoi skip away to her parents. She had been so quick to get her way with him. He had definitely underestimated her.

On the bright side, at least she still wanted to be friends with him. He had hoped she would, but he wouldn’t have been surprised if she had wanted nothing to do with him. Well, he was just glad things were working out in his favor. It was kind of weird thinking that he could have been married right now, if it hadn’t been for the earlier course of events.

As he was pondering over these things in his mind, he jumped from a sudden voice behind him.

“Hey, Tetsu.”

He turned around to see a familiar face. “Oh, Aomine-kun!”

“So things worked out in the end, huh?”

“Yeah, they did! I’m a little surprised how well things went though.”

“Not necessarily.”

“Hm? What do you mean?”

“Well, your parents love you a lot. They’re willing to accept you more than you realize. Now, getting an understanding girl like Momoi to accept you was just luck. Not many girls would be okay with their ex-fiancé ditching them at the altar…especially for another man.”

Kuroko laughed uncomfortably. “Hah hah…yeah. Oh, by the way, I wanted to ask you something.” A mischievous grin broke out across his face. _“Dai-chan?”_

“Wha-What?”

“She called you _Daaaaiiiii-chaaaaaaaaaan_.”

“So!? What about it?”

“Mmm…I don’t know if you wanna hear it.”

Aomine clicked his tongue in annoyance. “Tch. Try me.”

Kuroko dramatically brushed his hair from his eyes, giving a teasing look to Aomine.

“She liiiiikes you.”

A blush broke out across Aomine’s face. He folded his arms and turned up his nose.

“Pssssh. Whatever.”

“Ooooh. And _you_ like her, _too_. Don’tcha?”

“N-No! Why would I like your ex-fiancée!? What kind of best friend would I be if I did that?”

Kuroko changed his teasing tone to a more serious one.

“You don’t have to lie to me, Aomine-kun. Momoi and I both know that we never really liked each other in that sense. So she probably took an interest in you when you two first met at the luau. But since she was engaged to me, she never acted on those feelings. Now that things have changed, she can.”

Aomine continued to hold his pouting pose, nose turned up and eyes closed. Kuroko suspected, however, that his ears were listening to his words with great interest.

Kuroko sighed at Aomine’s stubbornness. “I really don’t mind if you two get together. It’s not like we were ever dating anyway. As your best friend, I’m giving you permission.”

Aomine opened an eye. “So…maybe I do like her…I’m still not so sure she’d wanna date me…”

“I already said she likes you.”

“What gives you that idea?”

“She called you Dai-chan.”

“So?”

“It means she likes you.”

“’The hell kinda proof is that!?”

Kuroko groaned. “Well, if you wanna be stubborn about it, go ahead.”

“I’m not being stubborn!” he said, scowling.

“See, that’s what I mean,” Kuroko mumbled.

A voice interrupted them. “I assume things are alright now?”

They both turned to the source.

“Oh. Hello, Midorima-kun,” Kuroko said. “Yeah. Things are better now.”

“That is very good to hear, nanodayo.”

Aomine scratched his head, a confused look on his face. “So, uh, what’s that you’re wearing?”

“Oh. Are you referring to my lucky item? Yes, they are quite fashionable, are they not?”

“Black, knee-high…stripper heels?”

“Excuse me!? They are highly popular in the fashion world in the current day!”

“Yeah,” Aomine snorted. “For _women_.”

Kuroko broke in. “Wait! You wore those to my wedding!?”

“Is that problematic to you, Kuroko?”

“Well…I mean…damn. I just don’t know about wearing stripper heels to a _wedding_ …”

“They are not ‘stripper heels’!! Honestly, don’t you two know anything about fashion?”

When the two just gawked at him in confusion, he let out an exasperated huff. He pushed up his glasses.

“Fine. If you two refuse to recognize the beauty in my shoewear, then I shall take my leave, nanodayo.” He turned on his heel and flipped his hair, sassily. “I will see you guys later.”

And with that, he strutted off as best he could walking with high heels on the sand. Kuroko and Aomine simply stared after him. After a few moments, Kuroko was the first to break the silence.

“Umm…what just happened?”

“I don’t know, it’s Midorima. Just go with it.”

* * *

“Are you sure, Tetsuya? You can still come with us if you’ve changed your mind.”

“Yes, Dad. I want to stay awhile. I’ve decided that I like it here in Hawaii after all.”

Kuroko was at the airport with his family that had attended the wedding. Kagami had tagged along as well. It had been a couple of days since the wedding incident occurred. Kuroko was there to see them off before they departed for Japan. Aomine and Midorima had decided that they wanted to stay in Hawaii as well, seeing as they wanted a vacation anyway.

But there was something Kuroko was still confused about. He didn’t know what Kagami was planning on doing. He had accompanied them to the airport, but he wasn’t planning on leaving that way. The cruise ship, however, had already departed. How was he going to leave Hawaii?

“Well, alright, honey,” Kuroko’s mom said, hugging him. “You can come visit home anytime.”

His dad patted him on the back. “That’s right. Don’t get lost on this island.”

“Goodbye, Tetsuya. We love you! Goodbye, Kagami!” His parents waved back at them as they joined the rest of his family going through security check.

“Bye, Mom! Bye, Dad! I love you, too!”

* * *

The taxi ride back to the hotel had been a quiet one. Kuroko had kept trying to catch Kagami’s eye, but to no avail. He wanted to know what Kagami was going to do, since he had ditched his ship.

They were now in the hotel room. It was a little past seven and dark outside. Kuroko sat on his bed, staring down at his lap while Kagami flipped through a brochure on the couch. The time ticked by, Kagami never making eye contact. When Kuroko finally couldn’t take the suspense any longer, he broke the silence.

“What are you going to do, Kagami-kun?”

Kagami tensed up at the sudden, straightforward question. “Oh…I uh…ya know…” He still didn’t look up to meet Kuroko’s eyes.

“No, I don’t know.”

Another awkward silence enveloped them. Eventually, Kuroko stood up and made his way over to the redhead. He bent over and stuck his face over the brochure so that he would _have_ to look at him. The action was met by a surprised shriek, as well as a blush.

“K-Kuroko! What are you doing?”

“Getting your attention, dummy.”

“Hmph. Well, what do you want?”

“I want to know if you’re staying in Hawaii or not.”

When Kagami made an attempt to hide behind the brochure again, Kuroko whipped out his hand and grabbed it, flinging it across the room. Kagami was about to snap at the bluehead, until he saw serious eyes staring at him. He immediately shut his gaping mouth.

“Kagami-kun. Please stop avoiding the question.”

Kagami seemed too intimidated to even utter a word of explanation. Kuroko lowered his gaze a little.

“Fine,” Kagami let out a breath he had been holding. “I…I’ve decided that I want to stay here, too.”

Kuroko tilted his head to the side. “Oh?”

“Y-Yeah.”

“Where are you going to stay?”

“Well, you see that’s where I…uh…well…” He rubbed the back of his neck, anxiously. “…I don’t really know how to ask you…”

“You want to stay with me?”

Kagami practically exploded in nosebleed at the innocent expression Kuroko had been making when he’d said that. He laid on the couch, buried under the cushions.

Kuroko fussed around in front of the couch, worriedly, at the collapsed man. “Kagami-kun? Are you alright? You’re steaming!”

Kagami sat up once again. “Yeah, I’m fine. It’s just…no. I can’t force you to take me in. I’ll get my own room at the hotel.”

“I don’t really mind. You shouldn’t waste money on another room when there are two beds in here. We can split the cost and—”

“No, Kuroko. You don’t get it. It wouldn’t work…”

“I don’t think this room is too expensive. And I could pay for most of—”

Kuroko was cut off as he suddenly was pushed down onto the couch. He lied on his back and stared up at the ceiling, a bit disoriented from the quick movement. He realized Kagami was towering over him, hands on either side of his head. He gazed into unreadable scarlet eyes.

“Don’t you see?” Kagami whispered. “I can’t control myself when I’m alone with you. It’ll be better for us if we don’t share a room. I’ll end up doing something you don’t want me to do.”

“Like what?”

Kagami made a noise of disbelief. “Huh!? You must have _some_ clue!”

Kuroko rolled his eyes upward as if he was thinking about it. Then he closed them. “Nope.”

“It has to do with _this_ kind of situation.”

“I haven’t a clue.”

“Are you freaking kidding me?” Kagami smacked his hand against his own forehead in frustration. “Ugh…fine. I guess I’ll have to show you an example.”

Before Kuroko could question his motives, the redhead was closing the distance between their faces. He effectively stopped Kuroko from asking anything as their lips met. Kuroko stared wide-eyed in surprise. Even after Kagami’s hinting, he hadn’t really expected him to act this way. But in a way, he realized he was just being his normal, oblivious self.

The kiss didn’t last all that long, because Kagami pulled away before he went any further. He averted his eyes, as if ashamed of his actions.

“Do you understand now? If I was alone with you in this room for awhile, then I’d probably end up trying something else. I’m not so sure you would want that…”

Kuroko finally picked up on what Kagami was trying to say. He ended up acting on an impulse before thinking.

This time, Kuroko was the one who kissed Kagami. He made sure that it lasted longer than the previous one. When he broke away and opened his eyes, he found a bewildered look on Kagami’s face. It seemed he couldn’t find the right words to say since he was opening and closing his mouth indecisively.

“What if I was okay with you trying things?”

Kagami finally found his voice. “W-What?”

Kuroko could hardly comprehend why he was acting the way he was as he shuffled even closer to Kagami. Weird feelings were buzzing around inside of him. He realized he was saying things he would never have thought he’d say. But, for some reason, he didn’t really care at that moment.

“Look. I love you, Kagami-kun. I’m comfortable around you. So…I kind of _want_ you to do things with me.”

_What the hell am I saying?_

Kuroko continued to stare intensely into the other’s eyes. After a moment of silence, Kagami finally spoke up.

“Like…now?”

Kuroko just seductively leaned forward, their faces inches from touching.

“Maybe…”

* * *

***4 months later***

Kuroko and Kagami went on to live together in the hotel…just for a few weeks. Then they decided to move into a small apartment farther into town. Of course, Kuroko had not forgotten his faithful dog Sparky. Aomine and Midorima had been taking care of him like they said they would…Aomine moreso than Midorima. But there was one thing Kuroko had definitely not foreseen happening…

 

“Uuuuurgh…” Kagami made grumbling noises as the dog moved closer to him.

“Arf!”

“Mmmmm, ngah…”

Sparky made an attempt to jump up onto his lap.

“Oh God please no!”

Many unexplainable noises were made as Kagami struggled to escape the mighty black-and-white terror. It was at that moment that Kuroko walked through the front door.

“I’m home!” he called out. “Kagami-kun? Where are you?”

He took his shoes off at the entranceway and then made his way past the kitchen toward the living room. He was greeted by a strange sight:

The furniture had been overturned and was arranged in a sort of barricade. Three chairs, some blankets, and many pillows made up this fort. The television was on but there was nobody in sight.

Kuroko was about to call out again when he noticed the little dog sitting on top of the pile of blankets and pillows. He barked happily when he noticed his owner.

“Hey, Sparky. Do you know where Kagami is? And what’s with this mess? Don’t tell me _you_ did this.”

“Kuroko?” A muffled voice was heard.

“Hm? Where is that coming from?”

He heard the voice again.

“Under here.”

Kuroko looked in the direction of the ‘fort’ on the floor. When he attempted to move some of the blankets, he was addressed with a loud yelp.

“No! Don’t move anything! This is my only defense from that beast.”

“What beast?”

“The…the…that dog.”

Kuroko sighed. Not this again.

“For the last time, Kagami-kun. Sparky is a nice dog. He won’t hurt you.”

The pile of blankets moved. “That’s what you say! He was about to attack me just now before you came home. Why do you have to leave me alone with that monster every day?”

“First off, he’s not a ‘monster’. Second, because I have a job. I can’t just skip daycare. That would make my kids sad.”

“But what about me?” Kagami sulked under the bundle. “I have to miss you all day and on top of that, I have to survive this…scary dog.”

“Then go back and work on your cruise ship.”

“You know I can’t do that yet. I only work during the summer.”

“Exactly. I felt like you needed to verbally remind yourself again. So until then, you’ll have to deal with having me after 6pm, mister.”

Kagami suddenly burst out from underneath the fort. “Don’t address me like one of your daycare kids!”

Kuroko’s cell phone began to ring inside his bag on the kitchen table. He walked over to it and searched through it. After he found his phone, he checked the collar id and answered it.

“Hey, Aomine-kun!”

“Hey, Kuroko. I was going to ask you about something. It’s…uh…about a restaurant…”

“Oooooh. Are you taking Momoi on a date?”

“Um…maybe.”

“So how are you two getting along these days anyway?”

“We’re doing really great actually,” Aomine sounded chirpier when he heard the question. “We’ve gone out together a few times, but we’ve never really been on a real ‘date’. I wanted to surprise her by taking her to a great restaurant. I called you so I could get some advice, ya know?”

Kuroko put his finger to his chin, pondering over the places he knew. Meanwhile Kagami continued to run around the living room with Sparky following close behind.

“Well, there’s this great Italian place on North Street. It’s called ‘Moretti’s’. I’m sure she would like it there.”

“Thanks! I’ll look it up later. Anywho, how are you getting along with Kagami?”

“Well…”

Kuroko turned to observe the pathetic scene of Kagami trembling in fear on top of the coffee table. The little dog tried to jump up on the table to join him. This just caused more distress in Kagami.

“We’re doing…great.”

“Is he still scared of Tetsuya #2?”

“I thought we agreed his name was Sparky. He’s my dog.”

“Doesn’t change the way his eyes look. They’re damn replicas of your own. Just think of it as a nickname.”

“Hah, hah,” Kuroko laughed, sarcastically. “Sure.”

 

Everything had worked out pretty well in the end. Kuroko did not have to get married yet and he was allowed to date the man he loved. He was currently living with said redhead as well as with his dog Sparky, aka ‘Tetsuya #2’. Aomine was dating Momoi and things were going well between them, too. Momoi got her happy ending, Aomine got his, and Kuroko and Kagami certainly got theirs. It was funny how things worked out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, that's it. *sobs in sadness and happiness* Thanks to everyone who read this story. I really enjoyed writing this! I plan to write more fanfics in the future, so never fear.
> 
> I wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year :)
> 
> P.S. I regret nothing about that Midorima scene. Nothing.  
> P.S. #2 Yes this chapter's title is a reference to that Panic! At the Disco song.


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